Diploma student sues University of Colombo, alleging exam marks were withheld for personal revenge

A former student of the University of Colombo has filed a compensation lawsuit in the Nugegoda District Court, seeking 5 million rupees in damages. The student claims that their time, effort, and money were wasted due to alleged exam irregularities, arbitrary actions, and acts of revenge carried out by the administration and a group of lecturers at the University of Colombo.

The complaint was filed by the student, Sanath Kumara Athukorala, through Attorney-at-Law Ms. Danosha Perera. The defendants named in the lawsuit are: Indika Mahesh Karunatilake, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Colombo; H.D. Karunaratne, former Vice-Chancellor; F.D.M. Nihal Sahabandu, Dean of the Faculty of Management and Finance; Sashitha Abeydeera Manorathne, Head of Department; lecturers D.C.L. Diyaguarachchi and W.P. Premaratne; Vajira Hapuginna Jayaratne, Additional Registrar of the Examinations Division; and the Attorney General.

The petitioner had pursued the 2022/2023 Advanced Diploma in Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management course, conducted by the Faculty of Management and Finance at the University of Colombo. He states that while there were no issues during the first evaluation, he faced severe injustice in the second evaluation concerning the subjects 'Operations Management for Small Businesses' (508) and 'Business Strategy and Sustainability' (510).

The petitioner student states that he refused a request from the lecturer in charge of subject 508, who, through another student, asked him to deposit 80,000 rupees into her account, claiming it was an urgent financial need. The lawsuit further indicates that in May 2024, at a workshop held in the Kiriella area, he also opposed a request to provide accommodation in his room to the said lecturer's husband, who had no connection to the university, leading her to develop animosity towards him.

It is alleged that, based on this animosity, the relevant lecturer arbitrarily and with retaliatory intent deviated from the prescribed marking scheme, awarded him low marks, and failed him in the exam. The petition also mentions an incident where exam paper content was allegedly disclosed to another group of students before the examination. Furthermore, Mr. Athukorala claims that for a group project in subject 510, 35,000 rupees were collected from each student, and the lecturer awarded full marks even to some students who were not actively involved in the project.

The petitioner states that after the results were released in January 2025, indicating he had failed the exam, he complained to the university administration. Subsequently, without conducting any re-examination, a new result sheet was issued in April 2025, stating that he and several other students had passed. The administration has not yet provided a reasonable explanation as to how students who initially failed were later passed without an exam, and a complaint regarding the incident has also been lodged with the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.

Despite internal investigations not being concluded and disregarding the objections raised, the university authorities proceeded with a graduation ceremony and awarded diplomas to the relevant students. Sanath Kumara Athukorala states that this illegal, fraudulent, and arbitrary conduct caused him to lose the expected pass from the course and face embarrassment among his friends. He is therefore requesting the Nugegoda District Court to order the defendants to pay him 5 million rupees in compensation for the damages he has incurred.