"President’s Counsel for the 1st Respondent submits that the 1st Respondent has taken note of the grievance of the Petitioners and is now agreeable to have the ERPM examination conducted entirely through the University Grants Commission. Accordingly, MCQ papers used for the final MBBS Examination would be used for the ERPM as well. This examination is held three times a year and would be common for all applicants. The petitioners contend that candidates who have passed certain subjects should be given credit and required to sit for only the subjects that they have failed. We are of the view that this is a reasonable request which should be accommodated. Accordingly, the University Grants Commission is directed to conduct the ERPM on the lines indicated above as already requested by the Sri Lanka Medical Council by letter dated 23.12.2008 addressed to the Chairman of the University Grants Commission. Letter dated 23.12.2008 produced by President’s Counsel is filed of record"

We now have reliable information that having agreed in Court to have the ERPM examination conducted entirely through the UGC, the SLMC is attempting to get the court order reversed through the intervention of the UGC. It does so by presenting to the UGC a version of the court order which runs as follows:

"....Accordingly MCQ papers used for the final MBBS Examination would be used for the ERPM as well. This examination is held three times an year and would be common for all applicants. The petitioners contend that candidates who have passed certain subjects should be given credit and required to sit for only the subjects that they have failed. We are of the view that this is a reasonable request which should be accommodated. Accordingly the University Grants Commission is directed to conduct the ERPM on the lines indicated above as already requested by the Sri Lanka Medical Council by letter dated 23.12.2008 addressed to the Chairman of the University Grants Commission. Letter dated 23.12.2008 produced by President’s Counsel is filed of record".

Anyone can see that by omitting the critical first sentence from the court order the SLMC is clearly attempting to mislead the UGC about the precise reason for its order.

Dear Editor, we turn to you to expose the stinking dishonesty of the SLMC in a matter which affect the lives of several hundred qualified doctors with foreign medical degrees. The Court has not ordered that the examination should be conducted by the UGC; it has only directed that the Examination should be conducted through the UGC. This surely cannot be beyond the capacity of the present UGC which has no less than three medical people on it.

Dr. Janaka Wickramasinghe