Concern over Law College whistle-blower
The London based human rights watchdog Amnesty International has expressed concern over the lack of proper investigation into the abduction of a whistle blower.
DM Thushara Jayaratne, a final year Law College student was abducted, interrogated and threatened with death on 04 March, according the rights watchdog. The Human Rights Commission in Sri Lanka (SLHRC) has refused to pursue the case after Mr Jayaratne filed a complaint about his abduction. Mr Jayaratne has lodged a complaint over alleged malpractices at the final year examination held on 05 December, last year. 'Special privileges' The whistle-blower has accused Sri Lanka Law College (SLLC) authorities of making exam papers available beforehand to selective students and offering special privileges to President Mahinda Rajapaksa's son, Namal, MP. Mr Jayaratne also alleges that the president's son received special treatment by getting special facilities to sit the examination in an air conditioned computer room. Chief Justice Asoka de Silva earlier told BBC Sinhala service that the allegations are a "serious matter of concern". The chief justice is officially the chair of the Council of Legal Education, the governing body of the Law College. Student Jayaratne earlier accused authorities of being "reluctant to investigate" despite appealing to the chief justice, bribery commission among other authorities. The student says he lodged a formal complaint after he overheard a conversation involving at least two candidates discussing questions in the Commercial Law question paper 30 minutes before the exam. President Rajapaksa's eldest son, Namal, was among the candidates who sat for the examination on that day. But he was not one of those students allegedly overheard by Mr Jayaratne.