Anura Kumara Dissanayake

Anura Kumara Dissanayake
Born	Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage Anura Kumara Dissanayake 24 11, 1968
Birthplace	Dewahuwa, Ceylon
Nationality	Sri Lankan
Occupation	Politician
Title	President of Sri Lanka
Known for	10th President of Sri Lanka, Leader of the National People's Power, Leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
Education	Bachelor of Science
Spouse(s)	Mallika Dissanayake
Children	1

Anura Kumara Dissanayake (born 24 November 1968), commonly referred to by his initials AKD, is a Sri Lankan politician serving as the tenth President of Sri Lanka since 23 September 2024. A figure who rose from rural origins and student activism during one of Sri Lanka's most turbulent periods, Dissanayake spent more than two decades in parliament before winning the presidency in September 2024, becoming the first Sri Lankan president to be elected from outside the country's traditional political establishment. He is the leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a position he has held since 2014, and the founding leader of the National People's Power (NPP), a broad political alliance established in 2019. Dissanayake first entered parliament through the national list in 2000 and later won election from the Kurunegala District in 2004, during which time he served as Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation. He subsequently represented the Colombo District from 2015 until his election to the presidency. His presidential victory in 2024 was historic in that he was the first president to be elected in a second round of vote counting under the preferential voting system, and the first to come from a third party rather than the two dominant political formations that had governed Sri Lanka since independence. His first year in office has been marked by what observers have described as a surprising embrace of pro-market economic reforms, even as his political roots lie firmly in the Sri Lankan left.

Early Life

Anura Kumara Dissanayake was born on 24 November 1968 in the village of Dewahuwa, near Galewela, in the Central Province of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). His full name, Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage Anura Kumara Dissanayake, reflects traditional Sinhalese naming conventions. In 1972, when Dissanayake was approximately four years old, his family moved to the village of Thambuththegama in the North Central Province, where he grew up and received his primary and secondary education.

Dissanayake attended Thambuttegama Central College, a government school in the rural area where his family had settled. His formative years coincided with a period of significant political upheaval in Sri Lanka, including ethnic tensions, economic difficulties, and growing youth discontent that would fuel two insurrections by the JVP. The social and economic conditions of the rural North Central Province, and the limited opportunities available to young people from such backgrounds, shaped the political consciousness that would later define his career.

The signing of the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord in 1987, which was deeply controversial among many Sinhalese Sri Lankans, proved to be a pivotal moment in the young Dissanayake's life. While enrolled as a student at the University of Peradeniya, he joined the Socialist Students Union (SSU), the student wing of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna. The JVP at this time was engaged in a violent insurrection against the Sri Lankan government, and Dissanayake became involved in clandestine revolutionary activity as a young activist. The government's counterinsurgency operations during the 1987–1989 JVP insurrection were severe, involving extrajudicial killings and disappearances of suspected JVP members and sympathisers. Facing threats to his safety, Dissanayake was forced to go underground.

After a period in hiding, Dissanayake transferred from the University of Peradeniya to the University of Kelaniya, where he was able to resume his studies in a safer environment as the worst of the counterinsurgency violence subsided.

Education

Dissanayake completed his secondary education at Thambuttegama Central College in the North Central Province. He initially enrolled at the University of Peradeniya, one of Sri Lanka's oldest and most prestigious universities, but his involvement in political activism during the turbulent late 1980s forced him to transfer to the University of Kelaniya. He was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Kelaniya in 1995, completing his undergraduate education after a prolonged period that reflected the disruptions caused by the JVP insurrection and the subsequent political turmoil of the era.

His university years were defined as much by political engagement as by academic study. At both Peradeniya and Kelaniya, Dissanayake was actively involved in student politics through the Socialist Students Union, and his experiences during this period laid the groundwork for his subsequent rise within the JVP's organisational hierarchy.

Career

Rise within the JVP (1995–2000)

Following the completion of his degree in 1995, Dissanayake continued to deepen his involvement with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna. In 1997, he was elected the national organiser of the Socialist Students Union, the student wing through which he had first entered political life a decade earlier. That same year marked a significant advancement in his party career when he was selected to the Central Committee of the JVP, placing him within the party's core decision-making body.

By the late 1990s, the JVP had undergone a significant transformation from the militant organisation of the 1987–1989 period. Under the leadership of figures such as Somawansa Amarasinghe, the party had renounced armed struggle and was repositioning itself as a legitimate parliamentary political force. Dissanayake's rise within the party coincided with and contributed to this transformation. In 1998, he was appointed to the JVP Political Bureau, an even more senior body within the party structure, signalling his emergence as one of the JVP's most prominent younger leaders.

Entry into Parliament and Ministerial Service (2000–2010)

Dissanayake entered the Parliament of Sri Lanka for the first time in 2000, gaining a seat through the national list. The national list system in Sri Lanka allows political parties to appoint members to parliament based on their share of the national vote, providing a pathway for party leaders and strategists who may not contest individual districts. He served as a national list member of parliament from 18 October 2000 to 7 February 2004.

In the 2004 general election, Dissanayake contested from the Kurunegala District and won his seat with the highest number of preferential votes in the district, a reflection of his growing popular support base. Following the election, which brought a coalition government to power under President Chandrika Kumaratunga, the JVP entered into a governing alliance with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. Dissanayake was appointed Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation in April 2004, serving under Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

As Agriculture Minister, Dissanayake was responsible for programmes related to irrigation infrastructure and agricultural development, areas of particular significance to Sri Lanka's rural economy. He served in this portfolio until June 2005, when the JVP withdrew from the governing coalition over disagreements with the government's approach to the peace process with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Following the JVP's exit from government, Dissanayake continued to represent the Kurunegala District in parliament. In 2008, he was appointed the leader of the JVP parliamentary group, effectively becoming the party's chief spokesperson and strategist within the legislature. He retained his Kurunegala District seat until 2010, when he was unable to retain it at the general election but re-entered parliament through the national list, serving as a national list MP from April 2010 to August 2015.

Leadership of the JVP and NPP (2014–2024)

In September 2014, Dissanayake succeeded Somawansa Amarasinghe as leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, marking a generational shift in the party's leadership. Under his leadership, the JVP sought to broaden its appeal beyond its traditional base of Sinhalese rural youth and leftist intellectuals.

In the 2015 general election, Dissanayake was elected to parliament from the Colombo District, representing the country's most urbanised and economically significant constituency. He was subsequently appointed Chief Opposition Whip, serving in that role from September 2015 to December 2018. During this period, he earned a reputation as one of the most active and effective parliamentarians, being selected as the most active Member of Parliament for five consecutive years.

In July 2019, Dissanayake took a step that would prove transformative for his political trajectory: he became the founding leader of the National People's Power (NPP), a broad political alliance that brought together the JVP with civil society organisations, professional groups, and activists from various sectors of Sri Lankan society. The NPP was conceived as a vehicle to attract voters who were disillusioned with the established political parties but who might not have been inclined to vote for the JVP alone. The alliance sought to present a clean governance agenda focused on anti-corruption, institutional reform, and economic justice.

2019 Presidential Election

Dissanayake contested the 2019 presidential election as the NPP's candidate. Running against established figures including Gotabaya Rajapaksa of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, Dissanayake finished in third place with approximately 3% of the vote. While the result was modest in numerical terms, the campaign served to raise Dissanayake's national profile and introduce the NPP as a political force to a broader electorate.

In the years following the 2019 election, Sri Lanka experienced a severe economic crisis beginning in 2022, which led to widespread public anger against the established political class. The crisis, marked by shortages of fuel, food, and medicine, a default on foreign debt, and mass protests that culminated in the ouster of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, created an environment in which the anti-establishment message of Dissanayake and the NPP found increasing resonance with voters.

During this period, Dissanayake was vocal in his criticism of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme negotiated by the subsequent government of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, arguing that the IMF's approach primarily served to protect corrupt regimes rather than address the structural causes of Sri Lanka's economic distress.

2024 Presidential Election and Presidency

Dissanayake ran for president a second time in the 2024 presidential election held on 21 September 2024. In a significant departure from the results of 2019, he emerged as a leading contender in a crowded field. No candidate secured more than 50% of first-preference votes in the initial count, and for the first time in Sri Lankan history, a presidential election was decided through a second round of vote counting under the preferential voting system. Dissanayake was declared the winner on 22 September 2024, defeating incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa.

He was sworn in as the tenth President of Sri Lanka on 23 September 2024, succeeding Ranil Wickremesinghe. His election was widely noted as breaking the seven-decade duopoly of Sri Lanka's two traditional political blocs — those associated with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the United National Party — that had governed the country since independence in 1948.

Upon assuming office, Dissanayake appointed Harini Amarasuriya as Prime Minister and initially held several cabinet portfolios himself, including the ministries of Defence, Finance, Agriculture, Land, Livestock, Irrigation, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and Energy. Following the November 2024 parliamentary elections, in which the NPP secured a strong mandate, he relinquished some of these portfolios; the Agriculture ministry was handed to K. D. Lalkantha and the Energy ministry to Kumara Jayakody in November 2024.

Despite his leftist background and his earlier criticism of the IMF programme, Dissanayake's approach to economic policy after taking office surprised many observers. According to Reuters, the country's first leftist president embraced pro-market reforms in his first year, a stance that drew positive reactions from investors. However, by early 2026, some analyses suggested that reform momentum had slowed, with the East Asia Forum noting that Dissanayake had governed with mixed results following his election.

Foreign Relations

As president, Dissanayake has engaged in international diplomacy across multiple fronts. In September 2025, he addressed the United Nations General Assembly at its 80th session, where he spoke about the challenges of poverty and its associated problems. He also met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres during the same visit to New York.

Relations with India, Sri Lanka's closest neighbour and a major economic and strategic partner, have been a key area of focus. In February 2026, Dissanayake met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the AI Summit 2026, where the two leaders reviewed bilateral ties and discussed cooperation in energy, infrastructure, and cultural relations.

Personal Life

Anura Kumara Dissanayake is married to Mallika Dissanayake, and the couple has one child. The family has resided at Pannipitiya Road, Pelawatte, Battaramulla, a suburb of Colombo. Dissanayake has maintained a reputation for personal austerity relative to many Sri Lankan politicians, a trait that has been noted by commentators as consistent with his political messaging against corruption and extravagance in public life.

In a 2018 interview with The Hindu, Dissanayake discussed the JVP's political evolution and his own views on Sri Lanka's ethnic question, the economy, and governance, providing insight into his personal political philosophy.

Dissanayake is known for his oratorical skills in the Sinhala language, with the Daily Mirror noting his "logical oratory" as a distinguishing feature of his political style.

Recognition

Dissanayake's recognition as the most active Member of Parliament for five consecutive years, as noted during his tenure as Chief Opposition Whip between 2015 and 2018, established his reputation as an unusually diligent parliamentarian.

His election as president in September 2024 was itself a form of historic recognition, as it represented the first time a candidate from outside the two traditional political blocs had won the Sri Lankan presidency. The Diplomat, in a retrospective assessment one year into his presidency, noted that his electoral victory "broke the seven-decade duopoly" that had characterised Sri Lankan politics since independence.

On the international stage, Dissanayake has been received at the highest levels of global diplomacy, including meetings with the UN Secretary-General and leaders of major powers. In December 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a formal message of condolences to Dissanayake following a disaster in Sri Lanka, an interaction that reflected the diplomatic standing associated with his office.

Legacy

Although Dissanayake's presidency is in its early stages, several aspects of his political career and rise to power have already shaped Sri Lankan political history in significant ways. His ascent from a rural background, through student activism during the violent JVP insurrection of the late 1980s, to the highest office in the land represents a trajectory unlike that of any previous Sri Lankan president, most of whom came from established political families or the upper echelons of the country's social hierarchy.

The transformation of the JVP under his leadership from a party with a militant past and a narrow electoral base into a credible governing force — primarily through the creation of the NPP coalition — stands as one of the more notable developments in post-independence Sri Lankan politics. The NPP model of uniting a traditional political party with civil society organisations and professional groups offered an alternative to the patronage-based political structures that had long dominated the country.

His economic pivot after taking office — from a critic of IMF-backed reforms to an implementer of pro-market policies — has generated significant debate among analysts and political observers. Reuters characterised this as a surprise to investors, while the East Asia Forum noted the challenges of sustaining reform momentum. The long-term assessment of his presidency will depend in significant measure on the outcomes of these economic policies and their impact on the Sri Lankan population that brought him to power.