reducing the retirement age of specialist doctors to 60 from 63.

The Court of Appeal today issued an interim order suspending the inclusion of doctors and consultant specialist doctors in a gazette notification reducing the mandatory retirement age of government sector employees to 60 years. This interim order will be effective until January 25.

The Court of Appeal's two-judge bench, comprising Justices Sobhitha Rajakaruna and Dhammika Ganepola, made this order consequent to a writ petition filed by 176 consultant specialists.

The petitioners are specialists in varied fields of medicine, including cardiology, cardio-thoracic surgery, oncology, neurology, obstetrics and gynecology, haematology, opthalmology, histopathology, anesthesia, pediatrics, and auto-rhinolaryngology.

The petitioners are challenging the decision of the Cabinet of ministers dated 17-10-2022. They alleged that this decision has been made illegally and in complete violation of their legitimate expectation to continue in service at least until they are 63 years old.

The petitioners stated that, as consultant specialist doctors, they have been guaranteed a defined compulsory retirement age of 63 years by both Cabinet Decisions as well as the Amendment to the Minute on Pensions with effect from 6.6.2017, and that, as a result, they were clearly identified as a separate category, distinct from other categories of public officers in general, and that this status and legitimate expectation had been violated.