The Kannangara College certificate controversy escalates as police summon a student and teachers and old boys issue opposing statements.
The Kannangara College certificate controversy has escalated after the school principal complained to police about a student whose official document circulated on social media.
The dispute concerns a character certificate issued to a student of C.W.W. Kannangara College in Colombo 08. Its circulation online has drawn sharply different reactions from a teachers’ union and the school’s Old Boys’ Association.
Principal N.H.S.K. Wijetunga filed the complaint with Borella Police on July 20. Following the complaint, the Borella Police Computer Crimes Investigation Division opened a special investigation.
The Police Media Division confirmed that officers contacted the student by telephone. They instructed the student to appear at Borella Police on the morning of July 23 and provide a statement.
Teachers’ Union Blames Principal, Not Student
Lanka Teachers’ Union Secretary Joseph Stalin criticised the decision to investigate the student.
He argued that authorities should instead investigate the principal for issuing a character certificate containing incorrect information.
“The principal is at fault; police should target the principal, not the student,” the union’s position stated.
Stalin said complaints about the alleged errors had already reached the Ministry of Education and the Regional Education Office.
According to him, the principal later corrected the disputed information and issued the student a new character certificate.
He therefore described the decision to complain to police after providing a corrected document as unjust.
The union’s intervention has added another dimension to the Kannangara College certificate controversy, raising questions about responsibility for the original document and the treatment of the student.
Old Boys Defend School’s Authority
Meanwhile, the Kannangara College Old Boys’ Association issued an official statement defending the legal status of the original character certificate.
The association said the school administration had issued it as an official document. It added that administrators considered the student’s disciplinary record and behavioural patterns at that time.
According to the association, the school administration holds full authority to assess a student’s discipline and ethical qualities.
However, it also said circulating such a personal document on social media had violated the student’s fundamental rights.
“The character certificate is legal; the student’s rights have been violated via social media,” the association maintained.
The Old Boys’ Association urged social media users to stop spreading false information that could damage the school’s decades-old reputation.
It also asked the public not to create unnecessary online controversies. Instead, any concerns should proceed through the appropriate legal and administrative channels.
The police investigation, competing statements and unresolved dispute over the document have now intensified public attention on the Kannangara College certificate controversy.
