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Ajith Perera

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Ajith P. Perera
Ajith P. Perera, prominent Sri Lankan politician, Chief Executive of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and Kalutara District Leader, 2024
Deputy Whip of the Opposition
In office
2024–Present
Minister of Information Technology and Digital Infrastructure
In office
2018–2020
State Minister of Power and Renewable Energy
In office
2015–2018
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
2015–2015
Personal details
Born (1967-12-02) December 2, 1967 (age 57)
Bandaragama, Sri Lanka
Political partySamagi Jana Balawegaya
Other political
affiliations		United National Party (Former)
SpouseNadeeka
Children3
Alma materAnanda College, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka Law College
ProfessionAttorney-at-Law


Ajith P. Perera is a Sri Lankan politician and member of Parliament. He began his political career in 2009 as a member of the Provincial Council of the Western Provincial Council. A lawyer by profession, he was first elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in 2010 as a member of the United National Party (UNP) representing the Kalutara District. He was re-elected to Parliament in 2015.

In 2020, Perera was one of the founding members of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), currently the main opposition party in Sri Lanka, under the leadership of Sajith Premadasa. Within the SJB, he holds several key positions, including chief executive, leader of the Kalutara District, chief organiser for the Kalutara Electorate, and a member of the working committee.[citation needed]

Perera re-entered Parliament in 2024, securing the highest number of preferential votes from the Kalutara Electoral District for the SJB.[1] He now serves as the Deputy Whip of the Opposition and is a member of the Constitutional Council of Sri Lanka.[2]

Perera has been active in the legal profession for over three decades, having entered Sri Lanka Law College in 1988. He has been a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka for 30 years. In 2022, he was elected as the President of the Panadura Bar Association, and in 2023, he was re-elected for a second consecutive term.[citation needed]

As the State Minister of Power and Renewable Energy, Perera led the Soorya Bala Sangramaya[3] (Battle for Solar Energy) initiative, which was launched in 2016. This community-based solar power generation project, undertaken in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA), originally aimed to add 1,000 MW of solar power to the national grid by 2025 and 1,500 MW by 2030. The initiative exceeded expectations, with more than 1,300 MW of Solar energy already connected to Sri Lanka’s national electricity grid by January 2025. The project provided households, religious places, hotels, and industries with options such as Net metering, Net Accounting, and Net Plus schemes, enabling consumers to generate and utilise solar electricity while selling excess power back to the national grid.

Perera was also a pioneer in introducing competitive bidding[4] to Sri Lanka’s power sector in 2016 for both solar and wind energy sectors. This policy reform set a benchmark in the power sector and has contributed significantly to reducing costs and fostering trust in renewable energy projects.[citation needed]

In addition, Perera provided political leadership to several other landmark renewable energy projects:

   •    Thambapavani Wind Farm[5] in Mannar, a 104 MW wind power plant.

   •    10 MW Kerawalapitiya waste-to-energy power plant[6], which addressed the nation’s waste disposal challenges by converting waste into energy.

He also serves as the Chairman of the Smart Energy Council of Sri Lanka, one of the country’s leading think tanks.

Born on 2 December 1967 in Bandaragama, a suburban town in the Kalutara District, Perera is an alumnus of the University of Sri Jayawardenapura, Sri Lanka Law College, and Ananda College, Colombo.

In addition to his professional and political accomplishments, Ajith P. Perera is supported by his wife, Nadeeka Perera, a government school teacher. They have three children.

Education

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Perera began his primary education at Wewita Maithree Maha Vidyalaya in Bandaragama. His exceptional performance in the Grade Five Scholarship Examination earned him a place at Ananda College, Colombo, widely regarded as the premier Buddhist school in Sri Lanka. At Ananda, he excelled not only in academics but also in debating and athletics, gaining recognition as a well-rounded and accomplished student.

After completing his secondary education, he pursued a Bachelor of Science degree at the Faculty of Applied Sciences at the University of Sri Jayawardenapura. During his time at the university, he demonstrated strong leadership qualities, earning the trust of his peers, who elected him as a student representative to the Faculty Board.

In 1988, he gained admission to Sri Lanka Law College,. He was enrolled as an Attorney-at-Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 1993. He was a member of the Law Students Union and was elected as Speaker of the Model Parliament.[7]

Professional life

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Perera’s legal career spans over three decades, primarily as a leading counsel in civil and criminal jurisdictions within the Panadura Courts, a suburban area in the Kalutara District.

He has been an active member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka for the past 25 years.

In 2022, he was elected as the President of the Panadura Bar Association, a position he retained in 2023 after being re-elected for a second consecutive term.

After entering Sri Lanka Law College in 1988, he was enrolled as an Attorney-at-Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 1993.

Political career

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Perera’s political journey began in 2007 when he was appointed as the Chief Organiser of the Bandaragama Electorate by the United National Party (UNP). In 2009 he contested the Western Province Provincial Council Election and was elected as a member of the Provincial Council, securing the highest number of preferential votes from the Kalutara District.

In 2010, he was elected to the parliament of Sri Lanka, representing the UNP with 48,558 votes from the Kalutara District.

Perera's parliamentary career includes several prominent roles:

  • Deputy Whip of the Opposition (2012)
  • Deputy Whip of the Government (2015)
  • Chairman of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Legal Affairs (Anti-Corruption) and Media
  • Member of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC)
  • Member of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE)


In 2015, Perera was appointed as the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and later as the State Minister of Power and Renewable Energy (2015-2018)[8]. From 2018 to 2020, he served as the Minister of Information Technology and Digital Infrastructure[9], where he played a key role in modernizing Sri Lanka's digital infrastructure and governance frameworks.

In 2020, Perera played a pivotal role in the founding of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) under the leadership of Sajith Premadasa. As the Chief Executive of the SJB and the Kalutara District Leader, he has been instrumental in strengthening the party’s organizational structure and expanding its influence across the district and beyond.

In 2024, he re-entered Parliament with the highest number of preferential votes from the Kalutara District under the SJB banner. At the time, he was appointed as the Deputy Whip of the Opposition and became a Member of the Constitutional Council of Sri Lanka, further solidifying his position as a key figure in Sri Lankan politics.

Within the UNP, Perera also served as the President of Jathika Adyapana Sevaka Sangamaya (JASS), the party's education sector trade union, and as a Working Committee Member of the Jathika Sevaka Sangamaya, the UNP’s main trade union arm.

A respected figure in Sri Lankan political discourse, Perera is known for his ability to articulate complex political issues effectively. He was among the first local politicians to utilize the internet for political dialogue, earning recognition for his blogs in Sinhala. His contributions to parliamentary affairs have been frequently highlighted by www.manthri.lk, which ranked him among the top five most active parliamentarians in Sri Lanka on multiple occasions.

Ajith P. Perera has also represented Sri Lanka on various international platforms, including the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA). His engagements include participating in the Westminster Seminar on Parliamentary Practices, contributing to discussions on truth and reconciliation in South Africa, addressing global cyberspace issues in the Netherlands, and representing Sri Lanka at conferences on security, energy, and governance in Geneva, Moscow, Bali, and Bangkok.

Ajith P. Perera’s political career is marked by his steadfast commitment to justice, good governance, and public service. He continues to be a leading voice in Sri Lankan politics, advocating for progressive reforms and the welfare of his constituents.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Kalutara District preferential vote results released". www.adaderana.lk. Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  2. ^ "Shritharan and Ajith Perera appointed to Constitutional Council". Gold FM News. Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  3. ^ colorlib. "Sooriyabala Sangaramaya". www.energy.gov.lk. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  4. ^ "Two 10 MW wind power plants to Jaffna | Daily FT". www.ft.lk. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  5. ^ "Mahaweli Complex - CEB". www.mahawelicomplex.lk. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  6. ^ "IMPACT STORY: Sri Lanka's first waste-to-energy power plant turns mountains of trash into clean electricity | UN Global Compact". unglobalcompact.org. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  7. ^ "Updated Profile". 9 December 2016.
  8. ^ "New State and Deputy Ministers sworn in". www.adaderana.lk. Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  9. ^ "Parliament.lk". Parliament.lk. Archived from the original on 2025-01-26.
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