SC urged to cancel Grade 5 Scholarship Exam Papers

by Lakmal Sooriyagoda

Twenty-seven (27) students, along with their parents, filed a Fundamental Rights petition in the Supreme Court yesterday, seeking an order to cancel Paper I and Paper II of the Grade 5 Scholarship Examination held on September 15. The petitioners are also requesting that the Grade 5 Scholarship Examination be re-conducted.

This petition was filed through Attorney-at-Law Manjula Balasooriya and the petitioners have named Commissioner General of Examinations Amith Jayasundara, Prime Minister and Minister of Education Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and several others as respondents.

The petitioners stated that at or about 6.00 pm on September 14, a model paper had been circulated through WhatsApp. Further, on the date of the Examination (15), at about 6.19 am several model papers had been circulated through WhatsApp.

The petitioners further stated in one of such model papers 16 questions were contained, wherein correct answers were also marked. They alleged that a number of private tuition masters who are doing classes for Grade 5 Scholarship Examination had also shared the said papers through WhatsApp groups.

The Petitioners stated that three almost identical questions are contained in the Paper I of the Examination and these three questions were confirmed to be leaked prior to holding the examination. They further stated that there are five more questions in the said paper that are in substance similar to questions of Paper I of the Examination, though they are not almost identical in nature.

The Petitioners state that they were made to understand through media that a decision had been taken to award full marks for three leaked questions of the Examination and not to re-conduct the examination. They stated that due to the highly competitive nature of the exam, a difference of a single mark in the final result of a student who sat for the Examination could make a decisive impact.

The petitioners are further seeking an order staying paper marking of papers of the examination held on September 15, 2024, until the final determination of this application.