Controversial Batticaloa Campus can reapply for registration:

Higher Education Ministry

By Rathindra Kuruwita

The administrators of the controversial Batticaloa Campus could reapply for registration with the Ministry of Higher Education although its previous application was rejected on April 05, 2019 as the evaluation committee was not convinced of the institution’s financial viability, the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) investigating the Easter Sunday attacks, was informed on Thursday.

Testifying before the PCoI, Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Higher Education Kamal Rohitha Uduwawala said that the applicants had not revealed that they had received foreign funds amounting to Rs. 5 billion. It had been revealed only after the Easter Sunday attacks during an inquiry by the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Education and Human Resources Development, Uduwawala said.

“These funds have come as soft loans and the Ministry received these details in June 2019,” the witness said. 

Uduwawala said that former Eastern Province Governor M. L. A. M. Hizubullah, his son and other officials had participated at the meetings held by the Ministry of Higher Education over the application.

The witness also told the PCoI that the Jamiah Naleemiah Islamic Institute, Beruwala had not been registered under the Higher Education Ministry as a degree awarding institution.

“According to the registration criteria to provide a local degree, the institution has to conduct at least one programme related to Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics. We called this the STEM concept. But the Jamiah Naleemiah Islamic Institute has Bachelor of Arts and Islamic studies degree programmes.”