Jayawardana and Two Others v. Dissanayake and Seven Others – sllr 2013 volume 1 page 001

Brief
In the case between Jayawardana and others (the Petitioners) and Dissanayake and others (the Respondents), the Supreme Court addressed whether the refusal to admit a minor child to D. S. Senanayake College, based on the family’s residence on State land deemed “unlawful occupation,” violated the constitutional guarantee of equality under Article 12(1). The central issue concerned the interpretation of “residency” in Circular No. 2011/18 and whether such residency must be “lawful” for purposes of school admission. It was held that the circular’s language should be applied as written and not limited by questions of legal title or occupancy status; the lawfulness of the family’s residence was irrelevant to the educational rights of the child. Reliance was placed on constitutional princip