News

Repeat of 2011 imbroglio?

Published

6 years ago

2020/11/7

Sahan Weerasooriya

JVP fires first shot over likely university selection dispute this year

By Saman Indrajith

Thousands of students who had sat the 2019 GCE Advanced Level examination were in difficulty as the government failed to release their cut-off marks to select universities 14 months after the exam; JVP led Socialist Students Union said yesterday.

National Organiser of the SSU, Rangana Devapriya, addressing the media, at the JVP headquarters in Pelawatte said the government had taken more than one year to release the cut-off marks for the 2019 examination. “The cut-off marks should have been released before commencing this year’s GCE Advanced Level exam so that those who could not obtain enough marks could sit this year’s exam. They have been deprived of that chance.

In 2019 students sat the examination under two syllabuses. Therefore the marks would be released under two categories. There would be two types of district rankings, national rankings and Z-scores. When there are two categories of subjects, a single common Z-score cannot be made for both categories. When their exam results were released, the students had some idea of their district and national rankings, and it is natural for the top performers to await university admission. The authorities should have made known how many students would be admitted to universities by releasing the cut-off marks but they waited till this year’s exam started to do so.”

The SSU National Organiser said that the UGC had stated that they would decide the number of students to be selected to the universities on the basis of guidelines set by a Supreme Court decision in 2011. “This is a lie. In 2011, there were two cases with regard to Z-score before the Supreme Court. None of them said the students of both streams should be selected from a common list. The determination was about how the Z score should be calculated. It called two sets of Z-score rankings. Thereafter education authorities prepared separate Z-score rankings for the two syllabuses and prepared a combined list. Then hundreds of students filed eight fundamental rights cases. Finally, the Supreme Court directed that the students be enrolled on the basis of highest rankings in the district and national ranking lists. That method led to the admission of 5,609 students in addition to the intake of 21,500 students in that year. That was a 26% increase. Now, the UGC has come out with a Combined Mean Score, which is an unfair method. We are against this unjust action and will fight for the students who have been deprived of their right to higher education owing to the actions of UGC authorities.

“In 2011, hundreds of students and parents went to courts. They waited for months and took to the streets. We hope that a similar situation will not arise again. We call upon the UGC and government to solve the problem faced by thousands of students without trying to hoodwink them.”

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News

Geneva takes up Sallay’s case and govt. ignores opportunity to answer accusations

Published

14 hours ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

Suresh Sallay

The government has chosen not to respond to questions raised by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) regarding the detention of retired Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay in connection with the ongoing investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested the ex-official in late February this year. The Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers have jointly raised the issue on 20 July, 2026.

Drawing attention of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to what they called alleged arbitrary detention of Sallay, former Director General of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) and former Director of Military Intelligence (DMI), under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), as well as allegations of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment while in custody, resulting in the grave deterioration of his health, and imminent risks of retaliation through further torture and ill-treatment resulting in irreparable harm, should he be released from hospital and returned to custody, the UN sought the government explanation with a 60-day period.

The UN has stated: “This communication, and any response received from your Excellency’s Government, will be made public via the communications reporting website at the 60 days mark. Should your Excellency’s Government respond within 60 days, both the communication and the response, may be published before the 60 days mark. The communications and responses

will also be made available in the subsequent periodic report to be presented to the Human Rights Council.”

In the absence of the government’s response, the UN posted the letter, dated 20 July, 2026, addressed to President Dissanayake. The full letter can be accessed https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=31125

News

Section of wartime KKS High Security Zone vacated to facilitate economic development in the area

Published

14 hours ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

The Army, last week, vacated an area, within the wartime high security zone in the Jaffna peninsula. The Defence Ministry said that an extent of 187.56 acres of land, belonging to the Cement Corporation in Kankesanthurai, Jaffna, has been released by the military. The released land, located in Grama Niladhari Division J/233, Kankesanthurai West, within the Valikamam North (Tellippalai) Divisional Secretariat Division, had been utilised by the Sri Lanka Army since the middle of 1997.

The release of the 187.56-acre extent forms part of the initiative to make State land available for the proposed investment zone in Kankesanthurai, thereby facilitating future investment and economic development in the area.

News

Lawyer lodges complaint against Govt. Printer, Media Ministry Secy.

Published

14 hours ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

A complaint has been lodged with the Colombo Fraud Investigation Bureau against the Government Printer and the Secretary to the Ministry of Media regarding the online release of falsified documents bearing a forged Speaker’s certificate.

Attorney-at-Law Aruna Laksiri has lodged a complaint with the Colombo Fraud Investigation Bureau requesting legal action against the Government Printer of the Department of Government Printing (No. 118, Dr. Danister de Silva Mawatha, Colombo 08), Prasanna Jayaratne, and the Secretary to the Ministry of Mass Media (Asidisi Medura, 163, Kirulapone Mawatha, Polhengoda, Colombo 05), Dr. Anil Jasinghe.

The complaint alleges the commission of offences by forging and uploading falsified documents online using a forged Speaker’s certification, failure to perform statutory duties, and misappropriation of public property.

The complaint states that a copy of the English translation of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution was downloaded and printed from the official website of the Government Printing Department (www.documents.gov.lk), which operates under the Ministry of Mass Media. On its outer cover and on page 1, the text “certified on 25th of September, 2026” is inscribed inside brackets.

The complaint pointed out that the Speaker has certified an English translation. Under Articles 23, 79, 83, and 80 of the Constitution, Parliament enacts laws and the Speaker certifies bills strictly in the Sinhala and Tamil languages; under the Constitution, therefore the Speaker cannot apply such certification to an English translation.