Nimal Siripala de Silva

Hon.
Nimal Siripala de Silva
නිමල් සිරිපාල ද සිල්වා
நிமல் சிறிபால டி சில்வா
Silva at Indian Ocean Conference in Dhaka (2023)
7th Chairperson of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party
Incumbent
Assumed office
2024
Disputed
Preceded byMaithripala Sirisena
Minister of Ports, Shipping and Aviation
In office
20 May 2022 – 23 September 2024
PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa
Ranil Wickramasinghe
Prime MinisterRanil Wickramasinghe
Dinesh Gunawardena
Preceded byPramitha Tennakoon
Succeeded byVijitha Herath
Minister of Labour
In office
12 August 2020 – 18 April 2022
PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa
Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa
Preceded byDullas Alahapperuma
Succeeded byVidura Wickremanayake
In office
4 September 2015 – 26 October 2018
PresidentMaithripala Sirisena
Prime MinisterRanil Wickremesinghe
Preceded byRanjith Maddumabandara
Succeeded byArjuna Ranatunga
Minister of Justice
In office
22 November 2019 – 12 August 2020
PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa
Prime MinisterMahinda Rajapaksa
Preceded byThalatha Atukorale
Succeeded byAli Sabry
13th Leader of the Opposition
In office
16 January 2015 – 26 June 2015
PresidentMaithripala Sirisena
Prime MinisterRanil Wickremesinghe
Preceded byRanil Wickremesinghe
Succeeded byR. Sampanthan
Leader of the House
In office
09 August 2005 – 20 January 2015
Preceded byMaithripala Sirisena
Succeeded byLakshman Kiriella
Member of Parliament
for Badulla District
In office
2000–2024
Member of Parliament
for Colombo District
In office
1989–2000
Personal details
Born (1944-09-06) 6 September 1944
Badulla, British Ceylon
PartySri Lanka Freedom Party
Other political
affiliations
Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance
(2019 – Present)
United People's Freedom Alliance
(2004 – 2019)
People's Alliance
(1994 – 2004)
Alma materNalanda College, Colombo
OccupationPolitics
ProfessionProctor

Nilenthi Nimal Siripala de Silva (born 6 September 1944) is a Sri Lankan politician who held a number of senior cabinet portfolios. He currently serves as the disputed chairman of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party.[1] He served as the Leader of the Opposition for a few months in 2015, and has served in several other ministerial posts: he is the former Cabinet Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation in 15th Parliament of Sri Lanka, former Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Management, the Minister of Ports, Shipping and Aviation[2] and former Leader of the House.[3]

Early life and education

De Silva was born to a family of teachers in Badulla. He was educated at Nalanda College, Colombo where he was a member of the college debating team. He entered Colombo Law College in 1966 and qualified as a proctor in 1971.[4][5]

Early career

Having started his legal practice in 1971, de Silva was active in politics from his student years, having started the Sri Lanka Freedom Party Law Students Association. He supported Sirimavo Bandaranaike in her campaign in the 1970 general election. He travelled to the United Kingdom in 1975 and qualified as a solicitor. He returned to Sri Lanka in 1978, and assisted Bandaranaike in her defense against the Special Presidential Commission appointed by President J. R. Jayawardene to investigate allegations against Bandaranaike for abuses of power during her tenure as Prime Minister.[4]

Political career

He entered parliament in 1989 having been elected from the Colombo Electoral District in the 1989 general election and was re-elected from Colombo till 2000, when he was elected from Badulla Electoral District and had been re-elected consecutively till 2024. He was the Assembly President of the World Health Organization.

Assassination attempt

On 4 July 1996, De Silva escaped with injuries in an attempted assassination by a LTTE female suicide bomber at the Stanley Road in Jaffna. This incident took place minutes after the Minister declared open a branch of Building Materials Corporation (BMC) in Jaffna. Brigadier Ananda Hamangoda (Jaffna Sector Commander), Ranjith Godamuna (Chairman, Lanka Cement) and 21 others were killed with more than 50 injured in the explosion.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Sri Lanka Freedom Party appoints Nimal Siripala as acting chair, CBK as advisor". EconomyNext. 8 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  2. ^ New Cabinet: Nimal Siripala de Silva appointed Minister of Labour
  3. ^ Hon. Nimal Siripala de Silva is a member of the biggest thieves gang in Sri lanka, M.P
  4. ^ a b "COVER STORY - JULY 2013". Business Today. Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  5. ^ "Always With The Party". Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  6. ^ Wasantha Siriwardena (7 July 1996). "Thursdays blast in Jaffna". The Sunday Times - Sri Lanka. Retrieved 19 February 2014.

Sources

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