The Opposition yesterday (07) began collecting signatures for a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, over the inclusion of a link to an adult content website, in the Grade 06 English language textbook.

The signing of the no-faith motion commenced at the Opposition Leader’s Office at the Parliamentary complex with Opposition and SJB Leader Sajith Premadasa, placing the first signature on the motion.

Party sources said that key opposition parties, including the SJB, had reached a consensus to proceed with the initiative and were planning to submit the motion to the Speaker within the week.

Opposition MPs argue that the inclusion of an inappropriate web link in the Grade 6 English module, along with broader shortcomings in the education reform process, formed the basis of the no-confidence motion. Premadasa has described the incident as a violation of children’s rights, warning that it reflected serious lapses in oversight and accountability.

Addressing Parliament amidst the growing criticism, Dr. Amarasuriya said the disputed Grade 6 English module had not reached schoolchildren and its distribution had been halted immediately after the error was detected. She said an investigation had been launched without delay to determine how the mistake occurred, at what stage it was introduced, and who was responsible.

The Prime Minister assured the House that disciplinary or legal action would follow once accountability was clearly established. She said the National Education Commission operated under its own regulatory framework and that the inquiry was being conducted in accordance with procedures laid down by the relevant council appointed to examine the matter.

“Our intention is not to hide facts, but to understand why this happened and to ensure it does not happen again,” she said, stressing the government’s commitment to transparency and accountability in the education sector.

Dr. Amarasuriya said Grade 6 students are scheduled to receive their learning modules on January 21, while textbooks for Grade 1 students were due to be distributed by January 29. She noted that authorities were working to complete all revisions and approvals before those dates so that students receive only properly vetted materials.

The Prime Minister urged the public not to judge the entire reform programme based on a single incident, arguing that education reforms should be assessed on their long-term goals rather than isolated mistakes. “This incident should not be used to undermine education reforms,” she said, adding that student welfare remains the government’s top priority.

She also told Parliament that the controversial lesson had been formally removed following a recommendation by the academic advisory board of the National Institute of Education (NIE).

She said that the activity highlighted in the Grade 6 English module was a reading comprehension exercise involving hypothetical characters and did not require students to provide personal information. “It is simply a reading task, not a data collection exercise,” she said.

Sri Lanka Management Service Association (SMSA) says that the Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local government haven’t taken tangible measures so far to address their grievances.

SMSA Secretary Nuwan Pradeep Kithsiri told The Island that they faced severe salary anomalies and service discrepancies. Against the backdrop of growing unemployment among graduates, the SMSA proposed what Kithsiri called a sustainable solution to the Consultative Committee of the Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government Ministry to overcome the difficulties.

Alleging that the Consultative Committee failed to have a scientific discussion on SMSA’s proposals, Kithsiri said instead a sub-committee that inquired into the issues at hand put out an interim report. Responding to another query, Kithsiri alleged that it was meant to suppress the issues and definitely not to solve them.

Accusing the National People’s Power (NPP) government of turning a blind eye to their legitimate grievances, Kithsiri said that the administration would have to pay a price for following the advice of one or two trade union activists pursuing their own interests and the ministry.

This sort of approach could cause deterioration of the NPP government, he said, adding that the government should keep in mind that a particular position taken by the majority was not always right.

Kithsiri said that in the run-up to the last presidential election, held in Sept, 2024, SMSA handed over the same set of proposals to the Secretary to the Ministry Pradeep Yasaratne, Director General of Combined Services S. Aloka Bandara, Director General of Management Services S.K. Liyanagama and Director General of Establishments H. A. Chandana Kumarasinghe. Unfortunately, none of them, individually or collectively, sought to intervene, Kithsiri claimed. According to him, successive governments deliberately deprived the management services of the position they deserved.

Kithsiri said that the government wanted the management services under their thumb and use them as political tools.

The incumbent government was taking steps to recruit required numbers to management services as it quite rightly realised their services were needed, Kithsiri said, while recalling the deterioration of management services by the use of development officers to carry through work of management service personnel. (SF)

Marking a significant milestone in the digital transformation of the country’s legal sector, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has adopted LankaSign Digital Signatures, enabled by LankaPay, to digitally sign electronic documents to drive digital transformation in the legal profession.

To commemorate this landmark initiative, several key office-bearers of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka were ceremoniously handed over highly secure LankaSign digital signature tokens on 05 January, 2026, at the premises of the Bar Association.

Digital signatures would play a key role in the digitalisation of the legal system by enabling legal professionals to sign electronic documents anytime, anywhere, delivering unprecedented convenience and efficiency. In addition, digital signatures allow for the secure electronic sharing, archiving, and retrieval of documents, significantly reducing reliance on physical paperwork. Importantly, they provide an enhanced layer of security through authentication, non-repudiation, and data integrity, which are paramount requirements for legal documentation and proceedings.

President of the Bar Association Rajeev Amarasuriya expressing his views on the occasion stated “This initiative represents a significant step towards the digitalisation of the legal profession. The use of secure digital signatures will improve efficiency, reduce reliance on physical documentation, and strengthen trust in electronic legal processes. BASL is happy to provide leadership to this transition in collaboration with LankaPay, supporting the vision of seeing a truly digitised legal system.”

Speaking of the collaboration with BASL, CEO of LankaPay Channa de Silva stated “It is our pleasure to note that BASL has taken a very progressive step to adopt LankaSign digital signatures, marking an important step in embracing secure digital communication within the legal fraternity. LankaPay is happy to support BASL by providing digital signature tokens to its office bearers, which symbolises our shared commitment to a future-ready legal ecosystem, becoming an integral part of the country’s broader digitalisation journey. We commend BASL for this progressive move in supporting legal professionals to operate within a digitally enabled legal ecosystem in Sri Lanka.”

As the apex professional body, representing over 26,000+ legal professionals islandwide, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka recognises its responsibility to prepare its membership to operate effectively within a fully digitalised judicial ecosystem. The introduction of digital signatures to the BASL marks the first phase of a broader rollout that will be extended to the Association’s wider membership in due course.

This collaboration with LankaSign underscores BASL’s commitment to embracing secure, trusted, and nationally governed digital solutions in support of Sri Lanka’s evolving legal and judicial landscape.