D. S. Senanayake

Prime Minister of Ceylon

21 October 1884 Botale, Mirigama, British Ceylon

22 March 1952(1952-03-22) (67) Colombo, Dominion of Ceylon

24 September 1947 – 22 March 1952

Prime Minister of Sri Lanka "Don Senanayake" redirects here. For the entrepreneur and philanthropist, see Don Spater Senanayake. This article includes a list of general references, but it remains largely unverified because it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (October 2019 ) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Don Stephen Senanayake (Sinhala: දොන් ස්ටෙෆන් සේනානායක ; Tamil: டி. எஸ். சேனநாயக்கா ; 21 October 1884 – 22 March 1952) was a Ceylonese statesman. He was the first Prime Minister of Ceylon having emerged as the leader of the Sri Lankan independence movement that led to the establishment of self-rule in Ceylon. He is considered as the "Father of the Nation". Born to an entrepreneur from the village of Botale, Senanayake was educated at S. Thomas' College, Mutwal before briefly working as a clerk in the Surveyor General's Department. Joining the family business, he managed the family own estates and the Kahatagaha Graphite Mine. Long with his brothers, Senanayake became active in the temperance movement which grew into the independence movement following 1915 Sinhalese-Muslim riots, in which the Senanayake brothers were imprisoned without charges for 46 days. He was elected unopposed in 1924 to the Legislative Council of Ceylon from Negombo, becoming the Secretary of the unofficial members group of the Legislative Council. In 1931, he was elected to the State Council of Ceylon, where he served as Minister of Agriculture and Lands. He was elected to the first Parliament of Ceylon forming a government and serving as Ceylon's first Prime Minister from 1947 until his death in 1952.