S.U.B. Karalliyadde, J.

The Petitioner is employed as a Management Assistant (Grade I) at the University of Visual and Performing Arts of Sri Lanka. She preferred an application on 02.11.2017 marked as P4 for a post of Assistant Secretary/Assistant Registrar consequent to an internal notice dated 13.10.2017 marked as P3, calling for applications from the qualified internal applicants to fill the vacancies of Assistant Secretary/Assistant Registrar of the 1^st Respondent, the University Grant Commission (the UGC). The Petitioner was called for a written examination and scored 161 marks. By the letter dated 13.06.2018 marked as P6, the Secretary of the UGC (the 9^th Respondent) informed the Petitioner that she has been successful in the written examination and requested her to submit the duly filled information sheet marked as P7 sent along with P6. She submitted the duly filled information sheet. Thereafter, by the letter dated 06.07.2018 issued by the 9^th Respondent marked as P9, the Petitioner was called for an Interview. With that letter, the marking scheme which the Interview panel will use at the Structured Interview marked as P10 was attached. According to the said marking scheme, a minimum of 40% should be obtained to get through the Interview. After the interview was held, by the letter dated 26.10.2018 marked as P12, the Petitioner was informed that she had been unsuccessful at the Interview. Since the 16^th to 40^th Respondents had obtained the required marks in both the written exam and in the structured interview a decision was taken to appoint them to the posts of Assistant Secretaries/Assistant Registrars. According to the mark sheet marked as P18, the Petitioner had obtained 36.25% marks at the interview. The Petitioner preferred an appeal (marked as P20) against the decision of the 1^st Respondent to the University Services Appeal Board (the USAB), praying reliefs, inter alia to set aside the 1^st Respondent’s decision to appoint 16^th to 40^th Respondents and to appoint the Petitioner as an Assistant Secretary/Assistant Registrar. By the letter dated 27.05.2020 issued by the Secretary of the USAB marked as P24, the Petitioner was informed that her appeal was dismissed by the Order of the USAB dated 19.05.2020. Being aggrieved by the said Order of the USAB, the Petitioner preferred the instant Application to this Court seeking substantive reliefs, inter alia,

b) Issue a mandate in the nature of Writ of Certiorari to quash the decision made by the 1^st Respondent UGC to appoint the 16^th to 40^th Respondents as Assistant Registrars/Secretaries of the 1^st Respondent UGC

v) Issue a mandate in the nature of the Writ of Certiorari to quash the Order made in P24 by the 42^nd to 44^th Respondents of the 41^st Respondent University Services Appeals Board.

c) Issue a mandate in the nature of Writ of Mandamus compelling the 1^st Respondent UGC to conduct fresh interviews in terms of the procedure laid down in P3 and P14.

e) A mandate in the nature of Writ of Prohibition preventing the 1^st Respondent UGC from calling applications to fill the existing vacancies for the post of Assistant Registrars/Secretaries until the final determination of this Application.

The Petitioner has pleaded in the Petition to this Application that as per the Establishment Circular Letter No. 5/2018 marked as P19 issued by the Chairman of the 1^st Respondent (the 2^nd Respondent), all the Higher Educational Institutions/Institutes should use marking sheets based on the Marking Schemes approved by the Governing Authorities in allocating marks when appointing to all the posts in the university system. However, the position of Petitioner is that the marking scheme used by the Selection Committee in selecting the candidates relevant to this Application has not been approved by the Governing Authority and even though the marking scheme marked as P10 mentions five specific areas the Selection Committee should consider when allocating marks at the interview, the manner which