Orient Financial Services Corporation Ltd. vs Range Forest Officer, Ampara and Hon. Attorney General – sllr 2013 volume 1 page 208

In the case between Orient Financial Services Corporation Ltd. and the Range Forest Officer, Ampara, with the Hon. Attorney General as a party, the court addressed the application of vehicle forfeiture provisions under the amended Forest Ordinance and relevant sections of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The primary legal issue concerned the proper identification of “owner” status in the context of leased vehicles—specifically, whether the registered owner or the absolute owner (lending finance company) was entitled to procedural safeguards and the opportunity to show cause before confiscation. It was held that the person in actual possession, namely the registered owner, is responsible for demonstrating that adequate precautions were taken to prevent the commission of an offence, in accord