Profile: Sri Lanka’s president Anura Kumara Dissanayake

COLOMBO, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) — Anura Kumara Dissanayake was sworn in as president of Sri Lanka on Monday.
Candidate of the National People’s Power (NPP) Dissanayake emerged as the winner in a presidential election held on Saturday, the Election Commission confirmed Sunday.
Dissanayake was born on Nov. 24, 1968 in a village in Anuradhapura district, North Central province.
Having been involved in the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) from his school days, Dissanayake joined the JVP in 1987, becoming active in student politics.
He graduated from the University of Kelaniya in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science in physical science, and joined the JVP’s Political Bureau in 1998.
He has been a member of parliament since 2000, and served as the minister of agriculture, livestock, land and irrigation from 2004 to 2005.
In 2014, he was named the leader of the JVP.
In 2019, he became the leader of the NPP, a coalition of political parties and other organizations. ■