Wijesinghe v. The Secretary, Ministry of Education – SC APPEAL NO: 52/2020-2020

Brief
In the case between the Secretary, Ministry of Education and the Commissioner General of Examinations (as Appellants) and the petitioners (including parents and stakeholders of Horana Asoka College) as Respondents, the court addressed whether Horana Asoka College, formerly Marshall Preparatory School, was bound to comply with the general educational policy of the Government, specifically regarding the medium of instruction. It was held that while the school must comply with the broad general education policy mandated by law, the specific ministerial direction (P12) requiring vernacular instruction could not be enforced due to the absence of a clearly declared national policy precluding English medium instruction. The court reaffirmed that any direction must be firmly grounded in a co