Supreme Court says UGC violated FR of former Moscow Defence Attache’s son
Posted on February 5th, 2026
Courtesy The Daily Mirror
Colombo, Feb. 5 (Daily Mirror) – The Supreme Court today ordered the University Grants Commission to admit the son of the former Defence Attache to Moscow, to the Medical Faculty of a local university after a Fundamental Rights petition was filed challenging his rejection.
The Supreme Court made the order that the three year mandatory study requirement for children of Defence Attaches in a foreign country to be eligible for admission to a local university was in violation of the Fundamental Rights of the petitioner.
Earlier, the son of the former Defence Attache to Moscow Group Captain S.R. Jayaratne’s son, Damsith Jayaratne filed a Fundamental Rights petition before the Supreme Court after the University Grants Commission refused his application to enter a local university.
The Defence Attache was posted to Moscow in July 2023 and served till September 30, 2025. The entire family accompanied the Attache to Moscow, where his son studied the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) curriculum equivalent to the local G.C.E Advanced level curriculum. The son passed all of his subjects obtaining A grades.
He thereafter applied to a local university under the foreign student category but was denied entry because he did not complete three years of education in Moscow.
The petitioner told court that his father was posted to Moscow only for a period of two years and that his academic the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) curriculum equivalent to the local G.C.E Advanced Level curriculum was only for a period of two years.
Accordingly, he said the mandatory requirement discriminated him and all Defence Attaches’ children who are posted only for limited periods, resulting in limited periods of study for their children.
Justice Arjuna Obeysekere delivering the unanimous judgment of the Court stated that the decision to refuse entry by the University Grants Commission is a decision which a non-sensible authority acting with due appreciation of its responsibilities would have decided to adopt” and ordered the petitioner to be admitted to a Medical Faculty of a local university immediately.
Hafeel Farisz with Nishika Fonseka appeared for the petitioner. Deputy Solicitor General Ganga Wakishtarachchi appeared for the University Grants Commission.