His Excellency Ranasinghe Premadasa |
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3rd President of Sri Lanka | |
In office 2 January 1989 – 1 May 1993 |
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Prime Minister | Dingiri Banda Wijetunga |
Preceded by | Junius Richard Jayewardene |
Succeeded by | Dingiri Banda Wijetunga |
8th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka | |
In office 6 February 1978 – 2 January 1989 |
|
President | Junius Richard Jayewardene |
Preceded by | Junius Richard Jayewardene |
Succeeded by | Dingiri Banda Wijetunga |
Member of Parliament for Colombo Central |
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In office 22 March 1965 – 2 January 1989 |
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Preceded by | Razik Fareed |
Succeeded by | constituency abolished |
In office 19 March 1960 – 20 July 1960 |
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Preceded by | M.S. Themis |
Succeeded by | Razik Fareed |
Personal details | |
Born |
Colombo, British Ceylon (now in Sri Lanka) |
23 June 1924
Died | 1 May 1993 Colombo, Sri Lanka |
(aged 69)
Nationality | Sri Lankan |
Political party | United National Party |
Spouse(s) |
Hema Premadasa (née Wickrematunge) |
Children | Sajith, Dulanjali |
Alma mater | Hāvad (හාවඩ්) Girls' College, Dam Street Lawrence College, Maradana St Joseph's College, Colombo |
Sri Lankabhimanya Ranasinghe Premadasa (Sinhalese: රණසිංහ ප්රේමදාස,Tamil: ரணசிங்க பிரேமதாசா; 23 June 1924 – 1 May 1993) was the third President of Sri Lanka from 2 January 1989 to 1 May 1993. Before that, he served as the Prime Minister in the government headed by J. R. Jayewardene from 6 February 1978 to 1 January 1989. He was awarded Sri Lanka's most highest award to a civilian Sri Lankabhimanya in 1986 by President Junius Richard Jayewardene, the first to receive in Sri Lankan history. He was assassinated in Colombo in a suicide bombing by the LTTE.
R. Premadasa was born on 23 June 1924 at Dias Place, Colombo 11, to the family of Richard Ranasinghe (Ranasinghe Mudalali) of Kosgoda and Jayasinghe Arachchige Ensina Hamine of Batuwita, Horana. R. Premadasa was the oldest of five children, three sisters, and one brother. He received his primary education at Harvard Girls’ School, Dam Street, Colombo, post primary education at St. Lorenz’s College, Skinner’s Road South (Now Sri Sangaraja Mawatha, Maradana) and his secondary education at St. Joseph’s College, Colombo. While attending school, he attended the Hewavitharana Daham Pasala. He completed his education at St. Joseph’s College, during the Le Goc era. He satisfied all the requirements for registering at the University of London for higher studies. However, he gave up this opportunity to engage in higher studies and chose path of social service for the welfare of the poor and down- trodden.
He, the architect of the Sri Sucharitha Movement, a volunteers organisation with the objectives of uplifting the economic, social and spiritual development of the low income people living in shanty areas of the capital. He was the full-time organizer of the community development project of the area in 1939. These youth who enrolled in his development movement refrained from taking liquor and avoided smoking and gambling. Premadasa too was a teetotaler.