Applicability of thesawalamai law.

Thesawalamai law applies to all inhabitants of Northern Province, as a special law aspect. But it applies to all lands situated in Northern Province irrespective of Race or Ethnicity.

Reguklation No 18 of 1806, clause 06 States “ Thesawalamai shall continue in its applicability”.

Thesawalamai applies to Tamils in marriage matters through The Jaffna Matrimonial rights and Inheritance Ordinance No 01 of 1911.

Marriage between a Tamil subject to thesawalamai and a Tamil not under Thesawalamai it is not an issue. Because they were not different race or nationality.

Sec: 03 of such Ordinance express two situations on applicability on marriage issues.

3(1) When a woman subject to Thesawalamai married a man who not governed by Thesawalamai. She automatically exclude from Thesawalamai under substance period of such marriage.

3(2) when a woman not subject to Thesawalamai married a man who Comes under Thesawalamai. She automatically comes under Thesawalamai until break the marriage.

Thesawalamai is not a pure personal law, because it need a territorial application also. A personal subject to Thesawalamai who can change his personal law through change his inhabitancy, unlike the Muslim law or Kandyan Law.

Fernando V Proctor

This case analyzed the wife of Jolly Phillips was governed by Thesawalamai or Not? She descended from Jaffna Tamils. She was born in Puttalam and lived & died in Chilaw. She never visits to Jaffna, so she could not be called a Malabar inhabitant of Jaffna with the regulation 18 of 1806. The noticeable factor is her husband also not a Malabar. So she does nit herself become an inhabitant of Jaffna- Wood Renton .J

Vellupillai V Sivagamipillai

A man Jaffna Tamil went over to Batticolo and resided for thirty five years, died in 1907. After acquiring a large number of property in Batticollo, he married in 1891 in Jaffna, a Jaffna native. He setteled his family in Jaffna, but he visits periodically to Jaffna. In 1910 he removed his family to batticollo and lived there until his death.

Question is Whether the Matrimonial rights of the parties were governed by the Thesawalamai or Roman Dutch Law?

Held : both the husband & wife were “Malabar inhabitants of the province of Jaffna”. So their matrimonial rights were governed by Thesawalamai.

Some other legal positions derived from Velupillai V Sivagamipillai

Inhabitancy applies to a person who had acquired a permanent residence in the nature of a domicile in Jaffna- Wood Renton C.J

One who has his home in Jaffna he get the Inhabitancy – Middleton .J

If a person governed by Thesawalamai at the time of marriage he cannot change his inhabitancy later to the detriment of his wife.