AI-generated practice question — model-generated for extra practice, not a previous-year CBSE board question.
In 1948, Sri Lanka's Sinhala-majority government began asserting dominance through majoritarian policies. In 1956, Sinhala was declared the only official language, sidelining Tamil-speaking citizens. Next, preferential policies favoured Sinhalese in university admissions and government jobs, and the constitution directed the state to protect Buddhism.
These successive steps deepened Tamil alienation — each exclusion made the next protest more intense. Tamil demands for equal rights and regional autonomy were repeatedly denied, pushing communities from mistrust to hostility. By the 1980s, Tamil groups demanded a separate state — Tamil Eelam — and the conflict escalated into a civil war, causing mass casualties and displacement until 2009.
Source: Majoritarianism in Sri Lanka, Chapter 1
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Examiners want a cause-and-effect chain, not just a list of events. The key steps are: (1) Official Language Act 1956 → (2) preferential policies in jobs/education → (3) constitutional protection of Buddhism → (4) Tamil alienation and demand for autonomy → (5) denial of autonomy → (6) demand for separate Eelam → (7) civil war. Show how each denial escalated the next response. Bold key terms (Tamil Eelam, civil war) to signal precise knowledge.