Gamini Dissanayake

The Honourable
Gamini Dissanayake
MP
Leader of the Opposition
In office
25 August 1994 – 24 October 1994
President Dingiri Banda Wijetunga
Prime Minister Chandrika Kumaratunga
Preceded by Sirimavo Bandaranaike
Succeeded by Ranil Wickremesinghe
Member of the Sri Lankan Parliament
for Nuwara Eliya-Maskeliya
In office
1977–1988
Preceded by Constituency Established
Succeeded by Constituency Abolished
Member of the Sri Lankan Parliament
for Nuwara Eliya
In office
1970–1977
Preceded by D.J. Ranaweera
Succeeded by Constituency Abolished
Personal details
Born 20 March 1942
Kandy, Sri Lanka
Died 24 October 1994(1994-10-24) (aged 52)
Colombo, Sri Lanka (assassinated)
Nationality Sri Lankan
Spouse(s) Shrima Dissanayake
Children Navin, Mayantha, Varuni.
Alma mater Trinity College, Kandy,
Cambridge University, UK
Occupation politician
Profession Lawyer
Religion Buddhist

Dissanayake Mudiyanse Ralahamilage Lionel Gamini Dissanayake (known as Gamini Dissanayake; Sinhalese: ලයනල් ගාමිණි දිසානායක,Tamil: காமினி திஸாநாயக்க; 20 March 1942 – 24 October 1994) was a prominent Sri Lankan politician, a powerful minister of the United National Party, the presidential candidate of Sri Lanka and Leader of the Opposition.

Early life

He was born in Kandy as the eldest son of a family of seven children to Andrew Dissanayake who served as an MP and a deputy minister in the Sri Lanka Freedom Party government of S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. His mother, Welegedara Samaratunga Kumarihamy of Kotmale. Born and bred in Kotmale, his basic values were cultivated in this rural milieu social surrounding and environment. The wealthy Dissanayake family resided in both Kandy as well as Nuwara Eliya. Dissanayake had his schooling at the prestigious Trinity College in Kandy, and received his tertiary education at the Sri Lanka Law College. Later in life, he completed an MPhil Degree in International Relations at Cambridge University UK.

Political career

Gamini Dissanayake as Minister of Irrigation, Power and Highways in Prime Minister
J.R Jayewardene's Cabinet 1977

Gamini Dissanayake won the 1970 elections and became a member of parliament under UNP cadidature and was among one of the 18 UNP members in the parliament at a time when his party has faced an humiliating defeat. He comfortably secured his Nuwaraeliya-Maskeliya multielectorate seat in the 1977 elections and was appointed as the minister of Mahaweli Development. Dissanyake spearheaded the Mahaweli Development Project. This was a huge project which was expected to take 30 years to finish. But due to Dissanayake's skills he managed to finish the project within 6 years. The Mahaweli Development Project is the largest development project conducted in Sri Lanka after independence. The whole country was affected by the project which focused on irrigation, hydro power generation, agriculture, town & country development. Further it was criticised by the time as to introduce shinhala population into Tamil's motherland. Majority of the power generated for the local consumption is generated from these hydropower plants while an overwhelming majority of the rice cultivation in Sri Lanka is conducted in these Mahaweli areas. He was the chairperson of the Sri Lanka Cricket Board in the early 1980s and helped his country to gain the Test Status in cricket. He played a pivotal role in signing the Indoo-Lanka Peace Accord in 1987. In 1989 he was re elected as a MP from Nuwaraeliya District securing the highest percentage of preferential votes obtained by any UNP MP. He was the Minister of Estate Development during Premadasa regimn. He was not awarded a portfolio in 1990 cabinet reshuffle and remained as a back-seat MP in the parliament. Dissanayake was accused of abduction of Prof. Ralph Bultjens. Prof Rohan Goonarathne in an interview with Hasitha Kuruppu told that Dissanayake did that as Bultjens in his lectures accused Dissanayake for swindling of money.[1] Later he was acquitted from the courts. He played a major role in the aborted impeachment motion against President Premadasa and as a result was expelled from UNP in 1992. In the same year Dissanayaka joined Lalith Athulathmudali to form United National Democratic Front (DUNF) which was a rising political force of that era. Dissanayaka contested to Kandy District at 1993 provincial council elections and became a member of the Central Provincial Council. After the assassination of Athulathmudali, Dissanayake became the leader of DUNF. Later he rejoined UNP and was appointed to the parliament as a national list MP and was offered a vital portfolio in the Wijethunga Government. In 1994 PA came to power defeating UNP when Dissanayaka was re elected as a member of parliament from Kandy District. In a contest held among UNP MPs to choose the opposition leader Dissanayaka recorded a comfortable victory over Ranil Wickramasinghe.

Assassination

When President D.B. Wijetunga indicated he would not run in the 1994 presidential election, Dissanayake was selected as the UNP candidate at the same time he was the Leader of the Opposition in parliament. This was cut short when he was assassinated by a female suicide bomber of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) while he was addressing an election meeting at Thotalanga.[2] Government of India deputed Salim Ali IPS of CBI and Professor T D Dogra of All India Institute of Medical Sciences to assist the investigations of Gamini Dissanayake's assassination.[3] His wife Srima Dissanayake ran in his stead, but was defeated by People's Alliance candidate and Prime Minister Chandrika Kumaratunga.

He has two sons, who are active in politics, Navin and Mayantha. His eldest son Navin was the Cabinet Minister of State Management Reforms in President Mahinda Rajapakse's Government and Member of Parliament for Nuwara Eliya District; he was non-cabinet Minister of Investment Promotion too. Mayantha contested for the 2010 General Election for Kandy District as a UNP candidate.

See also

References

  1. ↑ GunaratnaRohan. Intreview with Hasitha Kuruppu. Ceylontoday. November 2013
  2. ↑ Jane's Sentinel examines the success of the LTTE in resisting the Sri Lankan forces
  3. ↑ "WIDOW WANTS INDIAN EXPERTS TO INVESTIGATE ASSASSINATION". AP News Archive BETA. 31 October 1994. Retrieved 5 December 2013. horizontal tab character in |publisher= at position 4 (help)


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