The Rajapaksa family () is a Sri Lankan family that is prominent in politics. It was one of Sri Lanka's most powerful families during

Mahinda Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa (; ; born Percy Mahendra Rajapaksa; 18 November 1945) is a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the sixth President of Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015; the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 2004 to 2005, 2018, and 2019 to 2022; the ...

's presidency, when many members of the family occupied senior positions in the Sri Lankan state. They have been particularly prominent in Sri Lankan national politics since 2005 when Mahinda Rajapaksa was elected president. As their political power grew, there were reports suggesting that the country was heading towards

autocracy Autocracy is a form of government in which absolute power is held by the head of state and Head of government, government, known as an autocrat. It includes some forms of monarchy and all forms of dictatorship, while it is contrasted with demo ...

under their rule. Following the unexpected defeat of Mahinda Rajapaksa in the 2015 presidential election, they have been accused of

authoritarianism Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...

, corruption,

nepotism Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...

and bad governance. In the 2019 presidential election,

Gotabaya Rajapaksa Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, (; ; born 20 June 1949) was a Sri Lankan politician and military officer who served as the eighth President of Sri Lanka from 18 November 2019 until his Resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, resignation on 14 July 202 ...

, the brother of Mahinda Rajapaksa, ran and won. The popularity of the Rajapaksa family collapsed after their actions caused the

economic crisis A financial crisis is any of a broad variety of situations in which some financial assets suddenly lose a large part of their nominal value. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many financial crises were associated with banking panics, and ma ...

that started in 2019, resulting in Sri Lanka defaulting on its debt for the first time in its post-independence history within just 30 months of coming to power. The extended Rajapaksa family is believed to have amassed a large amount of wealth and while the amount of and scale is unknown, several members of the family have been revealed in international investigations such as the

Pandora Papers The Pandora Papers are 11.9 million leaked documents with 2.9 terabytes of data that the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) published beginning on 3 October 2021. The leak exposed the secret offshore accounts of 35 ...

to be using networks of shell companies and trusts to hide their wealth in offshore tax havens, which has led to accusations of Rajapaksas turning Sri Lanka into a

Kleptocracy Kleptocracy (from Greek , "thief", or , "I steal", and from , "power, rule"), also referred to as thievocracy, is a government whose corrupt leaders (kleptocrats) use political power to expropriate the wealth of the people and land the ...

History

The Rajapaksas are a rural land-owning family from the village Giruwapattuwa in the southern district of

Hambantota Hambantota (, ) is the main city in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, Southern Province, Sri Lanka. This area was hit hard by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and underwent a number of maj ...

. The family owned paddy fields and coconut plantations. One of its members, Don David Rajapaksa, held the feudal post of Vidanarachchi in Ihala Valikada Korale. The family entered the political scene when Don David Rajapaksa's son Don Mathew Rajapaksa was elected in 1936 to represent Hambantota district in the

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative authority of China, headed by the Premier * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of S ...

. Don Mathew died in 1945 and at the resulting by-election his brother

Don Alwin Rajapaksa Don Alwin Rajapaksa (; ; 5 November 1905 – 7 November 1967) was a Sri Lankan politician and Member of Parliament who represented the Beliatta electorate in Hambantota district from 1947 to 1965. A founding member of Sri Lanka Freedom Party a ...

was elected without a contest. At the 1947 parliamentary election, two members of the family were elected to represent both of the constituencies in Hambantota district. Don Alwin Rajapaksa was elected MP for Beliatta and Lakshman Rajapaksa (Don Mathew's son) was elected MP for

. The Rajapaksas continued to dominate politics in Hambantota district for next three decades with two other members of the family, George Rajapaksa and

, also entering parliament. The Rajapaksas were represented in the country's legislatures continuously from 1936 till 1977. This streak ended after the UNP landslide at the 1977 parliamentary election. The family re-emerged as the dominant political force in Hambantota district when Mahinda and his brother

Chamal Rajapaksa Chamal Jayantha Rajapaksa (; ; born 30 October 1942) is a Sri Lankan politician who was Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka from 2010 to 2015. Previously he served as Minister of Ports and Aviation and the Minister for Irrigation and Water M ...

were elected in the 1989 parliamentary election to represent

Hambantota Electoral District Hambantota electoral district is one of the 22 multi-member electoral districts of Sri Lanka created by the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka. The district is conterminous with the administrative district of Hambantota in the Southern province. T ...

. They were later joined by

Nirupama Rajapaksa Nirupama Deepika Rajapaksa (born 13 April 1962) is a Sri Lankan politician, a former member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka and a former deputy minister. Biography Rajapaksa, herself a Sinhalese Buddhist, is married to an ethnic Tamil Hindu, ...

Basil Rajapaksa Basil Rajapaksa (born 27 April 1951) is a Sri Lankan-American politician. He is a former Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for the national list. He was also a member of the Sri Lankan Parliament from 2007 to 2015. During the peri ...

and

Namal Rajapaksa Lakshman Namal Rajapaksa (, ; born 10 April 1986; known as Namal Rajapaksa) is a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician. He is the eldest son of former President of Sri Lanka, President and former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Prime Minister Mahinda Ra ...

. Although the Rajapaksas had dominated politics in

Hambantota District Hambantota District ( ''hambantoṭa distrikkaya''; ''Ampāntōṭṭai māvaṭṭam'') is a Districts of Sri Lanka, district in Southern Province, Sri Lanka. It is one of 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of t ...

since 1936, national politics had been dominated by other families such as the

Senanayake family The Senanayake family is a Sri Lankan family that is prominent in enterprise and politics. Along with many members who have been successful politician across generations, the family includes two Prime Ministers of Sri Lanka. History Don Spater fr ...

and

Bandaranaike family The Bandaranaike family is a Sinhalese family prominent in Sri Lankan politics. The family includes three prime ministers and one President of Sri Lanka. History The Bandaranayaka family is claimed to originate from Nilaperumal Pandaram, wh ...

. This changed in 2005 when Mahinda Rajapaksa was

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population ch ...

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

. Since then, members of the family have been appointed to senior political positions. Immediately after being elected president, Mahinda appointed his brother

Gotabhaya Rajapaksa Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, (; ; born 20 June 1949) was a Sri Lankan politician and military officer who served as the eighth President of Sri Lanka from 18 November 2019 until his Resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, resignation on 14 July 202 ...

as Defence Secretary, the most senior civil service position in the

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

. Another brother, Basil Rajapaksa, was appointed Senior Presidential Advisor. In 2010 Mahinda Rajapaksa was re-elected President contesting against a grand opposition coalition that included UNP, TNA, JVP. At the 2010 Parliamentary Elections, Chamal Rajapaksa, Basil Rajapaksa and Namal Rajapaksa were elected. Basil Rajapaksa received 425,100 preferential votes from the Gampaha District, the highest by any candidate at the 2010 General election while Namal Rajapaksa obtained 147,568 preferential votes from Hambantota District, the highest majority percentage-wise at the election. Subsequently, Chamal was elected as the Speaker of Parliament unanimously and Basil was appointed as the Minister of Economic Development. Between them the three Rajapaksa brothers are in charge of five government ministries: Defence & Urban Development, Law & Order, Economic Development, Finance & Planning and Ports & Highways. At one point the brothers reportedly directly controlled 70% of the national budget. The Rajapaksas denied having control over such amounts. According to the 2014 budget the brothers have been allocated 47% of the national budget (40% of recurrent budget and 57% of capital budget). Numerous other members of the extended family have also been appointed to senior positions state institutions. The accumulation of so much power by one family has inevitably led to accusations of

. The Rajapaksas deny the charges of nepotism even though evidence of large amounts of corruption, such as the censorship of journalists and the family's unwillingness to yield power to recent victorious Tamils in Northern Sri Lanka, exist everywhere the country. After the defeat of Mahinda Rajapaksa's

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

which resulted in the loss of their senior positions, some brothers of Mahinda Rajapaksa have fled from the country to avoid being arrested on charges of corruption and wrongdoing.

Political scandal

Following the 2015 presidential election defeat, the Rajapaksa family were accused of misusing public resources during the campaign, including use of the

Sri Lankan Air Force The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF; ; ) is the air arm and the youngest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. It was founded in 1951 as the Royal Ceylon Air Force (RCyAF) with the assistance of the Royal Air Force (RAF). The SLAF played a major role throug ...

in the campaign that cost $17,273.28 (Rs. 2,278,000.00) of public funds. The Rajapaksa family received numerous state resource abuse complaints from organisations and election monitors, including involvement in fraud, misuse of powers, and murder. Among the charges are money laundering said to have taken $5.31 billion (Rs. 700 billion) out of the country illegally through Sri Lanka's Central Bank using Mahinda Rajapaksa's close association with

Ajith Nivard Cabraal Ajith Nivard Cabraal () (born 14 December 1954) is a Sri Lankan accountant and politician who was also the 16th Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. He is also the former State Minister of Finance, Capital Markets and State Enterprise Ref ...

, the former governor of

Central Bank of Sri Lanka The Central Bank of Sri Lanka ( CBSL; ), known until 1985 as the Central Bank of Ceylon, is the central bank of Sri Lanka. It was established in 1950 under the Monetary Law Act No.58 of 1949 (MLA) and in terms of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Ac ...

. On 23 January 2015, the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

government announced that would assist the Sri Lankan government in search of funds that were transferred by the Rajapaksa regime into Port

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

offshore bank An offshore bank is a bank that is operated and regulated under international banking license (often called offshore license), which usually prohibits the bank from establishing any business activities in the jurisdiction of establishment. Due to ...

accounts. In February 2015,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

pledged to help the Sirisena Government in tracing the billion of dollars that were taken out of the country illegally. Sirisena's government sought help from the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

and the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

in locating this hidden wealth to expose the alleged corruption of the previous regime. An Anti-Corruption Unit was formed by then Prime Minister

Ranil Wickremesinghe Ranil Wickremesinghe (; ; born 24 March 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the ninth president of Sri Lanka from 2022 to 2024. He has also served as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 1993–1994, 2001–2004, 2015–2018, 2018-2019 a ...

, and the new Cabinet has appointed a high-powered "rapid response team" to look into corrupt land transactions, stock market price-fixing and the abuse of state funds for political purposes by Rajapaksa family and the close association of Mahinda Rajapaksa. Public sentiment towards the ruling Rajapaksha-led government took a significant downturn during the foreign currency and economic crisis faced by Sri Lanka in 2022. Demonstrations against their rule were held in major residential areas of Colombo including one held near the president

's private resident. In the escalation of protests, an angry mob in Sri Lanka burned down several homes belonging to the Rajapaksa family. Previously, protesters were attacked by government supporters.

2019 presidential election and economic crisis

In 2018,

, brother of Mahinda Rajapaksa emerged as a possible candidate for the 2019 Presidential election, which he successfully contested on a pro-nationalistic, economic development and national security platform, gaining a majority from the predominant Sinhalese areas of the island. He is the first person with military background to be elected as President of Sri Lanka and also the first person to be elected President who had not held an elected office prior. After

2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Sri Lanka on 5 August 2020 to elect 225 members to Sri Lanka's 16th Parliament. 16,263,885 people were eligible to vote in the election, 31.95% of whom were young voters. The incumbent Sri Lanka People's ...

, Mahinda Rajapaksa was appointed as the Prime Minister while Chamal Rajapaksa and Namal Rajapaksa became Minister of Irrigation and

Minister of Youth and Sports Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

respectively in the Second Gotabaya Rajapaksa cabinet. Later in July 2021

was appointed as the

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

after entering the parliament from the

national list The National List (, ''Reshima Mamlakhtit''), sometimes translated as the State List, was a political party in Israel. Despite being founded by David Ben-Gurion, one of the fathers of the Israeli left, the party is one of the ancestors of the mo ...

. When the country began to face the economic downfall, the public blame it on the Rajapaksa family's corruption and economic mismanagement. Following the massive protests demanding the Rajapaksa family to resign, they resigned from their Ministerial portfolios. Mahinda Rajapakshe resigned on 9 May 2022, after instigating a violent attack on protesters at

Galle Face Green Galle Face Green is a ocean-side urban park, which stretches for along the coast, in the heart of Colombo, the financial and business capital of Sri Lanka. The promenade was initially laid out in 1859 by Governor Sir Henry George Ward, alth ...

, resulting in series of retaliatory attacks against Rajapakshe loyalists by the protesters. On 9 June, Basil Rajapakshe resigned from his parliamentary seat. Later in July 2022, President Gotabaya fled the country and stepped down, after the protesters stormed his

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

. In November 2023,

Supreme court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

ruled that former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, ex-prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, former finance minister Basil Rajapaksa and other senior officials violated the fundamental rights of the people by mishandling the economy and causing the unprecedented economic crisis. Namal Rajapakshe contested the

2024 Sri Lankan presidential election Presidential elections were held in Sri Lanka on 21 September 2024. Incumbent President of Sri Lanka, president Ranil Wickremesinghe ran for re-election as an Independent politician, independent candidate, making him the first sitting president ...

as the SLPP candidate, and became 4th with only 2.57% of the popular votes. In

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, for the first time in 88 years, no member of Rajapaksa family contested from their ancestral seat of Hambanthota, with both Mahinda Rajapaksa and Chamal Rajapaksa stepping down from re-election and Namal Rajapaksa seeking entry through the

National list The National List (, ''Reshima Mamlakhtit''), sometimes translated as the State List, was a political party in Israel. Despite being founded by David Ben-Gurion, one of the fathers of the Israeli left, the party is one of the ancestors of the mo ...

Wealth

Wealth of the Rajapaksa family has been a subject of speculation with many members believed to have amassed a large amount of hidden wealth some of which have been revealed in international investigations and claims of wealth reaching over billions of dollars have been made. The Rajapaksa family owned the Carlton Sports Network, the Carlton Pre-schools and the Carlton Motor Sports Club which have been accused of illegally using state resources Nama Rajapaksa is the owner of Gowers Corporate Services, HelloCorp, and NR Consultants which have been accused of being used for money laundering and getting lucrative contracts from the state-owned SriLankan Airlines during the Rajapaksa administration. Rohitha Rajapaksa who has never been employed and lacks any recorded sources of income was found to own a luxury hotel in the Sinharaja reserve called the "Green Eco Lodge". The hotel was initially believed to have been owned by Yoshitha Rajapaksa but an investigation confirmed that Rohitha was the owner. Environmental activists have accused the hotel of damaging the biodiversity by the construction of the hotel and have accused the Rajapaksa family of using the military in the construction of the hotel Rohitha accepted that he owned the hotel and denied any wrongdoing during its construction.

and her husband Thirukumar Nadesan was exposed by the

for using offshore shell companies to hide their wealth. The couple was revealed to own luxury apartments in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, as well as a large number of expensive artworks. The ICIJ was able to confirm 18 million USD worth of offshore assets but the real amount of is believed to be significantly higher as leaked emails from Nadesan's advisor to

Asiaciti Trust Asiaciti Trust is an international financial company established in Hong Kong, with operations in Asia, the Americas, and the Pacific. Its services revolve around corporate services, fiduciary matters, wealth protection, and administration. Backgr ...

placed their overall wealth in 2011 at more than $160 million.

Family tree

1. Don David Rajapaksa,

Vidane Arachchi Vidane Arachchi was an influential post (ranked above an Vidane but below a Muhandiram) in the native headmen system in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during the colonial era. Appointed by the Government Agent, the holder had much control over the people of t ...

(colonial post) + Dona Gimara Moonesinghe ::1.1 Don Charles Coronelis Rajapaksa ::1.2 Dona Carolina (Carlina) Bandara Weeraman ::1.3. Don Mathew Rajapaksa (1896-1945), Member of

for Hambantota (1936-45), + Emalin (Emalyn) Weeratunga ::::1.3.1.

Lakshman Rajapaksa Lakshman Rajapaksa (24 July 1924 – 1981) was a Sri Lankan politician. Rajapaska contested Hambantota electorate in 1947 General Elections, representing the Communist Party of Ceylon. He was successful defeating his rival, Charles Edirisuri ...

(1924-1981), Member of Parliament for

(1947-52, 1956-60), Member of Parliament for Tissamaharama (1960-65), Member of Parliament for Mulkirigala (1976-77) ::::1.3.2. George Rajapaksa (died 1976), Minister of Health, Member of Parliament for Mulkirigala (1960-76) + Lalitha Samarasekara :::::1.3.2.1.

(born 1962), Deputy Minister of Water Supply & Drainage (2010-), Member of Parliament for

(1994-2000, 2005-2015) + Thirukumaran Nadesan :::::1.3.2.2. Shyamlal Rajapaksa (1966-2009), Member of Southern Provincial Council (1999-2004) + Prashanthi ::::1.3.3. Esther Gurly Rupasinghe ::::1.3.4. Pearl (Peri) Jayanthi Gunaratne ::::1.3.5. Kamala Wickramasuriya :::::1.3.5.1 Anoma Laphir, Former Co-ordinating Secretary to the President :::::1.3.5.2

Jaliya Wickramasuriya Jaliya Wickramasuriya is a Sri Lankan businessman. A close relative of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, he was the Sri Lankan Ambassador to the United States from 2008 to 2014, until the US government asked the Sri Lankan government to re ...

(born 1960), Former Ambassador to the US :::::1.3.5.3

Prasanna Wickramasuriya Lieutenant Colonel Prasanna Wickramasuriya, WWV, RWP, RSP is a highly decorated (retired) Sri Lanka Army officer who served as Chairman of Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd. As a two-time recipient of the Weera Wickrama Vibhushan ...

, Former Chairman of Airport and Aviation Services Limited ::::1.3.6. Neil Kumaradasa Rajapaksa ::::1.3.7. Ruby Lalitha Rajapaksa + Nandasiri Rajapakse :::::1.3.7.1 Chithra :::::1.3.7.2 Kapila :::::1.3.7.3 Suyama :::::1.3.7.4 Maneesa ::1.4.

(1905-67), Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Government Minister, Member of Parliament for Beliatta (1947-60, 1960-65) + Dandina Samarasinghe Dissanayake* (see Related families below) :::1.4.1. Jayanthi Rajapaksa (born 1940) ::::1.4.1.1. Himal Laleendra Hettiarachchi, CEO of Sky Networks ::::1.4.1.2. Rangani Hettiarachchi :::1.4.2.

(born 1942),

Speaker of Parliament The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hun ...

(2010-15), Minister of Irrigation & Water Management (2007-2010), Deputy Minister of Plantation Industries (2004-07), Deputy Minister of Ports Development & Development of the South (2000-01), Member of Parliament for Hambantota District (1989-) + Chandra Malini Wijewardene ::::1.4.2.1.

Shashindra Rajapaksa Shasheendra Kumara Rajapaksa (known as ''Shasheendra Rajapaksa'') is a Sri Lankan politician. He is a Member of Sri Lankan Parliament for Monaragala District and former State Minister of Paddy and Cereals, Organic Food, Vegetables, Fruits, Chili ...

, Chief Minister of Uva Province (2009-2015), Member of Uva Provincial Council for

Monaragala District Monaragala (, ) is a district in Uva Province of Sri Lanka. It is the second largest of the 25 districts in Sri Lanka, with an area of . Main Towns * Monaragala * Bibile * Buttala * Wellawaya * Kataragama * Siyambalanduva * medagama * T ...

(2009-), Basnayaka Nilame of the Ruhunu Maha Kataragama Devalaya, Private Secretary to the President ::::1.4.2.2. Shamindra Rajapaksa, Director

SriLankan Airlines SriLankan Airlines is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member airline of the Oneworld airline alliance. It was launched in 1979 as Air Lanka following the termination of operations of the original Sri Lankan flag carrier Air Ceylon. As of t ...

(2010-2014), Director of

Sri Lanka Telecom Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (, ), doing business as SLTMobitel, is the national telecommunications services provider in Sri Lanka and one of the country's largest companies with an annual turnover in excess of Rs 100 billion. The company provides dom ...

(2010-2014) :::1.4.3.

(born 1945),

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

(2005-2015),

Minister of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

(2005-2015), Minister of Finance & Planning (2005-2015), Minister of Highways (2010), Minister of Ports & Aviation (2010), Minister of Ports & Highways (2010-2015), Minister of Law & Order (2013-2015),

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

(2004-05) (2018) (2019-22),

Leader of Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

(2002-04) (2018-19), Chief Opposition Whip (2001-02), Minister of Ports (2000-01), Minister of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources Development (1997-01), Minister of Labour & Vocational Training (1994-97), Member of Parliament for Hambantota District (1989-2005), Member of Parliament for Beliatta Electorate (1970-77) +

Shiranthi Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa (; ; born Percy Mahendra Rajapaksa; 18 November 1945) is a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the sixth President of Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015; the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 2004 to 2005, 2018, and 2019 to 2022; the ...

(née Wickremasinghe)** (see Related families below) ::::1.4.3.1.

(born 1986), Minister of Youth and Sports (2020-22) Member of Parliament for Hambantota District (2010-), Chairman of Tharunyata Hetak, Owner of Carlton Sports Network ::::1.4.3.2.

Yoshitha Rajapaksa Lieutenant Commander Yoshitha Rajapaksa (born 12 June 1988) is a Sri Lankan sportsman and former naval officer. He is the second son of the sixth president of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapaksa and served as the chief of staff to the prime minister o ...

(born 1988), Prime Minister's Chief of Staff, Owner of Carlton Sports Network ::::1.4.3.3.

Rohitha Rajapaksa Rohitha Rajapaksa (born 15 June 1989) is a Sri Lankan cricketer and media personality. He is the youngest son of former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. He has two elder brothers, Namal and Yoshitha. He was a member of the Sri Lanka Na ...

(born 1989) :::1.4.4. Chandra Tudor Rajapaksa (1947-2018), Private Secretary to the

, Private Secretary to the Minister of Ports & Highways ::::1.4.4.1. Chaminda Rajapaksa, Presidential Adviser, Co-ordinator for Hambantota :::1.4.5. Lieutenant Colonel

(born 1949),

(2019-22), former Defence Secretary, Chairman of Lanka Hospitals, Chairman of Lanka Logistics ::::1.4.5.1. Manoj Rajapaksa :::1.4.6.

(born 1951), Minister of Finance (2021-22) Minister of Economic Development (2010-15), Member of Parliament (2007-15), Senior Presidential Advisor (2005-), Chairman of Uthuru Wasanthaya (2009-13) + Pushpa Rajapaksa ::::1.4.6.1. Thejani Rajapaksa ::::1.4.6.2. Bimalka Rajapaksa ::::1.4.6.3. Ashantha Rajapaksa :::1.4.7. Dudley Rajapaksa (born 1957) ::::1.4.7.1. Mihiri Rajapaksa :::1.4.8. Preethi Rajapaksa (born 1959) + Lalith Priyalal Chandradasa, Member of Securities & Exchange Commission, Chairman of

Sri Lanka Ports Authority Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is the state-owned operator of major commercial ports in Sri Lanka. Founded in 1979, SLPA currently operates ports in Colombo, Galle, Hambantota, Kankesanthurai, Oluvil, Point Pedro and Trincomalee Trincomalee ...

, Member of Insurance Board, General Secretary of the Government Medical Officers Association, Chairman of PJ Pharma Care (Ceylon) Ltd, Chairman of MED 1 (Pvt) Ltd, Chairman of Employees Holdings Limited, Chairman of National Aquaculture Development Authority, Chairman of Ceylon Fisheries Harbours Corporation ::::1.4.8.1. Malaka Chandradasa ::::1.4.8.2. Madhawa Chandradasa ::::1.4.8.3. Madini Chandradasa ::::1.4.8.4. Malika Chandradasa :::1.4.9. Chandani (Gandani) Rajapaksa (1961-2017) + Thusitha Ranawaka ::::1.4.9.1. Eshana Ranawaka ::::1.4.9.2.

Nipuna Ranawaka Nipuna Ranawaka (born 1 November 1990) is a Sri Lankan businessman, politician and Member of Parliament. Ranawaka was born on 1 November 1990. He is a nephew of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. He ...

::::1.4.9.3. Randula Ranawaka

Related families

Dissanayake

2. Samarasinghe Dissanayake :2.1. Dandina Samarasinghe Dissanayake +

(1905-1967), Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Government Minister, Member of Parliament for Beliatta (1947-60, 1960-65) ::See Family tree above for descendants :2.2. Nanda Samarasinghe Dissanayake* (d.2012) + Wilbert Weeratunga ::2.2.1.

Udayanga Weeratunga Udayanga Weeratunga is a Sri Lankan businessman who was the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka to the Russian Federation from 2006 to 2015. Weeratunga is a first cousin of President ...

, Ambassador to the Russian Federation ::2.2.2. Ramani Weeratunga ::2.2.3. Dayani Weeratunga ::2.2.4. Gayani Weeratunga :2.3. Samarasinghe Dissanayake + Kanthi Wakkumbura

Wickremasinghe

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...

E. P. Wickremasinghe + Violet Wickramasinghe (died 2008) :3.1. Nishantha Wickramasinghe, Chairman of

, Chairman of

Mihin Lanka Mihin Lanka was a Low-cost carrier, low-fare leisure airline based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was owned by the Sri Lankan government. The airline operated scheduled flights from its hub at Bandaranaike International Airport to a number of cities in ...

::3.1.1. Dilshan Wickramasinghe, CEO of Asset Networks (Pvt) Ltd/Asset Holdings (Pvt) Ltd ::3.1.2. Shehan Wickramasinghe , SLAF Pilot. :3.2.

(b. 1947) (née Wickremasinghe)** +

(b. 1945), President (2005-), Prime Minister (2004-05), Minister of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources Development (2000-01), Leader of Opposition (2002-04), Chief Opposition Whip (2001-02), Member of Parliament for Beliatta (1970-77), Member of Parliament for Hambantota District (1989-2005) :::See Family tree above for descendants :3.3. Srimal Wickramasinghe, Deputy Chief of Mission and Minister at Embassy in Vienna ::3.3.1. Tishan Wickramasinghe ::3.3.2. Mishan Wickramasinghe

Other relatives

* Sathya Hettige,

Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka This is a list of justices of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. They are listed in the order in which they took the judicial oath of office and commenced their term. List of justices 19th century 20th century 21st century See als ...

(2011-2014) * Janaka Wakkumbura, Member of Parliament for Kalawana, Ratnapura District

Citations

References

* * * * * {{cite news, title=Infographics: Rajapaksa Family And Nepotism, url=https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/infographic-rajapaksa-family-and-nepotism/, newspaper=Colombo Telegraph, date=20 March 2013 Opponents of the Aragalaya