George Rosario Motha (22 November 1892 – 1950) was a

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

ese politician, lawyer and Tamil activist. Motha was elected to the first

Parliament of Ceylon The Parliament of Ceylon was the legislative body of British Ceylon & Dominion of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1947 by the Soulbury Constitution, prior to independence on 4 February 1948. Parliament replaced the State Council of Ceylon. ...

in 1947 representing the

Ceylon Indian Congress The Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) (; ''Lanka Kamkaru Kongrasaya'') is a political party in Sri Lanka that has traditionally represented Sri Lanka Tamils (Indian origin), Sri Lankan Tamils of Indian origin working in the plantation sector of th ...

as the member for the Maskeliya electorate. He was strongly opposed to Ceylon Citizenship Act No 18 of 1948, whereby Indian Tamils were legally denied Ceylon citizenship, speaking and voting against the Act. Motha stating in parliament that not only would many Indian Tamils be unable to prove their paternal genealogy but also the Sinhalese community would be automatically recognised effectively discriminating against the Indian Tamil population. Motha died in 1950 and his seat representing the Maskeliya electorate was filled by Abdul Aziz, following a by-election in March 1950.

References

1892 births 1950 deaths Ceylon Workers' Congress politicians Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka Sri Lankan lawyers Tamil politicians Members of the 1st Parliament of Ceylon {{CentralLK-politician-stub