In Sri Lanka, which one of the following changes to the 1956 law gave rise to the possibility of civil war ?
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-15 07:01 · grounding rag
Model Answer
Answer: B — Declaring Sinhala as the official language.
In 1956, an Act was passed recognising Sinhala as the only official language, disregarding Tamil. This increased alienation among Sri Lankan Tamils, eventually leading to civil war.
Source: Majoritarianism in Sri Lanka, Chapter 1
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Explanation
- The question asks specifically about the 1956 law, so option B is the direct answer from the passage.
- Option D (preference for Sinhala in government jobs) was a later policy, not the 1956 Act itself — do not confuse the two.
- Options A and C are incorrect: the law did the opposite of A, and Tamil was not declared official.
- Examiners expect you to identify the correct option and briefly justify it with a factual statement from the chapter.