Felix R. Dias Bandaranaike (
Sinhala:ෆීලික්ස් ඩයස් බණඩාරනායක) (5 November 1930 – 26 June 1985) was a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, who served as Cabinet
Minister of Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
,
Parliamentary Secretary for the Prime Minister and
Defence and External Affairs (''de facto''
foreign minister
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...
) (1960–1965) and Cabinet
Minister of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...
(1970–77) in the cabinet of Prime Minister
Sirima Bandaranaike
Sirima Nicole Wiratunga (14 February 1964 – 7 December 1989), known simply by her first name Sirima, was a singer who sang in English and French. She was primarily known for her duet " Là-bas", recorded in 1987 with Jean-Jacques Goldman, which w ...
. He was a very popular person about the anti-corruption campaign and also known as the ''"virtual leader of the state"'' during the
SLFP
The Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( si, ශ්රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය, translit=Śrī Laṁkā Nidahas Pakṣaya; ta, இலங்கை சுதந்திரக் கட்சி, translit=Ilaṅkai Cutantirak Ka ...
governments after the death of Prime minister
S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. He was very active in defeating two major coups against the government, one is
1962 attempted military coup and
JVP's
1971 JVP Insurrection.
Early life and education
Born on 5 November 1930 to
Felix Reginald Dias Bandaranaike II
Justice Felix Reginald Dias Bandaranaike II ( si, ෆෙලික්ස් රෙජිනල්ඩ් ඩයස් බණඩාරනායක) (17 January 1891 – 26 October 1951) was a Ceylonese (Sri Lankan) judge and lawyer. He was a Puisn ...
, Judge of the Supreme Court and Freda Dias Abeysinghe, he had a sister Christine Manel Dias Bandaranaike and a half brother of Prof.
Michael Dias Bandaranaike who held the Chair of Jurisprudence at the
University of Cambridge
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, he was also a nephew of
S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike
Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப ...
. He was an outstanding scholar at
Royal College, Colombo
Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janua ...
, at the
University of Ceylon
The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...
and at the
Colombo Law College
Sri Lanka Law College (abbreviated as SLLC), formerly known as Ceylon Law College, is a law college, and the only legal institution where one can enroll as a attorney-at-law in Sri Lanka. It was established in 1874, under the then Council of Legal ...
, carrying away most of the prestigious prizes. Taking oaths as an
Advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...
, Felix Dias started his practice as in civil law.
Political career
First Bandaranaike administration
Following the assassination of
S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike
Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப ...
, Felix Dias entered politics to help his uncle's party. He was elected to parliament from the
electorate of Dompe in the
1960 March general election and again in the
1960 July general election from the
Sri Lanka Freedom Party
The Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( si, ශ්රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය, translit=Śrī Laṁkā Nidahas Pakṣaya; ta, இலங்கை சுதந்திரக் கட்சி, translit=Ilaṅkai Cutantirak Ka ...
(SLFP). With formation of the SLFP lead government of Bandaranaike's widow
Sirima Bandaranaike
Sirima Nicole Wiratunga (14 February 1964 – 7 December 1989), known simply by her first name Sirima, was a singer who sang in English and French. She was primarily known for her duet " Là-bas", recorded in 1987 with Jean-Jacques Goldman, which w ...
as Prime Minister. Felix Dias was appointed to the
Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
as Minister of Finance, becoming the youngest Cabinet Minister of Finance in the Commonwealth, at the age of 29. He was concurrently appointed
Parliamentary Secretary for
Defence and External Affairs. In the early years Sirima Bandaranaike began to relay heavily on Felix Dias making him a powerful figure behind the Bandaranaike government. He influenced the governments actions in subduing the Satyagraha campaign in
Jaffna
Jaffna (, ) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th most ...
in the 1961 and personally lead the crackdown and investigation into the
1962 military coup, rounding up the coup leaders and even personally interrogating them. He took many drastic steps to bring to leaders to bar, when the current law of the country was found inadequate to try the leaders he had the new ''Criminal Law Special Provision Act of 1962'' drafted and passed by parliament. Due to problems in implementing rice subsidies he resigned from the post of minister. He retained his seat in the
1965 general election, but the SLFP was defeated and found its self in the opposition. While in opposition he established a private farm. Felix Dias was considered to be instrumental in the major public administration reforms that took place during this time. This included the abolition of the
Ceylon Civil Service
The Ceylon Civil Service, popularly known by its acronym CCS, was the premier civil service of the Government of Ceylon under British colonial rule and in the immediate post-independence period. Established in 1833, it functioned as part of the ...
, which was replaced by the
Ceylon Administrative Service
The Sri Lanka Administrative Service (SLAS) ( Sinhala: ශ්රී ලංකා පරිපාලන සේවය; śrī laṁkā paripālana sēvaya) is the key administrative service of the Government of Sri Lanka, with civil servants worki ...
and the replacement of the
Village Headmen with that of
Grama Sevaka.
Second Bandaranaike administration
He retained his seat in the
1970 general election with the landslide victory of the SLFP lead coalition, he was appointed
Minister of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...
in Sirima Bandaranaike's
second cabinet with the portfolio of
Public Administration, Local Government and Home Affairs. The following year he played a major role in guiding the country though the
1971 JVP Insurrection. This included the establishment of the
Criminal Justice Commission to prosecute the captured insurgents and the effective police investigation into routing out the JVP. During his term as Minister of Justice, the legal system saw many changes. The
Court of Appeal of Sri Lanka
A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordanc ...
was established in 1971, the ''Justice Law No. 44 of 1973'' saw
Advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...
s and
Proctor
Proctor (a variant of ''procurator'') is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another.
The title is used in England and some other English-speaking countries in three principal contexts:
* In law, a proctor is a historical class of lawye ...
s merged into a single group of practitioners known as
Attorneys-at-laws. In 1975, he was appointed
Minister of Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
succeeding
N. M. Perera
Nanayakkarapathirage Martin Perera, commonly known as Dr. N. M. Perera ( Sinhala එන්.එම්.පෙරේරා ; 6 June 1904 – 14 August 1979), was one of the leaders of the Sri Lankan Trotskyist Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP). He w ...
after he and other
LSSP
The Lanka Sama Samaja Party, often abbreviated as LSSP ( literally: Lanka Socialist Party, Sinhala: ලංකා සම සමාජ පක්ෂය, Tamil: லங்கா சமசமாஜக் கட்சி), is a major Trotskyist politic ...
ministers were sacked by Sirima Bandaranaike. Felix Dias continued many of the socialist economic policies that nationalized private estates and industries, focusing on a centralized economy. These policies resulted in corruption and inefficiency, lead to economic decline. A stout loyalist of
Sirima Bandaranaike
Sirima Nicole Wiratunga (14 February 1964 – 7 December 1989), known simply by her first name Sirima, was a singer who sang in English and French. She was primarily known for her duet " Là-bas", recorded in 1987 with Jean-Jacques Goldman, which w ...
, he supported her in having the government extended by two more years using its majority in parliament, then the six years it was elected for ended in 1975. In 1977, SLFP faced a major defeat in the
1977 general election in which he lost his seat to
Sarathchandra Rajakaruna of the
United National Party
The United National Party, often abbreviated as UNP ( si, එක්සත් ජාතික පක්ෂය, translit=Eksath Jāthika Pakshaya, ta, ஐக்கிய தேசியக் கட்சி, translit=Aikkiya Tēciyak Kaṭci), ...
.
Loss of civic rights
Felix filed several cases to prevent the abuse of power by the Government led by President
Junius Richard Jayawardena. On 10 February 1978 the
UNP government passed the Special Presidential Commissions of Inquiry Law No. 7 of 1978 to inquire into matters relating to alleged corruption during the 1970 – 1977 period. Felix successfully challenged the power of the Special Presidential Commission appointed to inquire against him. Immediately thereafter the Parliament passed the Special Presidential Commissions of Inquiry (Amendment) Act No. 4 of 1978 to enable the Commission to re-inquire into the allegations.
Thereafter, Two Supreme Court Judges and One Court of Appeal Judge was appointed to inquire into the allegations including those against Felix. Appearing in person and arguing on the basis that one Judge,
K. C. E. de Alwis was unfit to hear cases due to his financial involvement with a person being investigated
A. H. M. Fowzie. The Supreme Court held (2:1 majority with
Neville Samarakoon
Neville Dunbar Mirahawatte Samarakoon, Q.C. (22 October 1919 – 1990) was a Sri Lankan lawyer, who served as the 36th Chief Justice of Sri Lanka from 1977 to 1984. His father was A. C. W. Samarakoon and his mother was Chandrawathi Mirahawatte Ku ...
CJ dissenting) that de Alwis was a person unfit to hold the office of a Commissioner. In this landmark case, it was held by Samarakoon CJ. that "Right‑minded people would not be unjustified if they look askance at other decisions of the 1st respondent. It might undermine that faith in the Commission itself which is necessary to command respect for its recommendations. This must be avoided, whatever the cost" reiterating emphatically the need to maintain judicial integrity and impartiality at all costs. He was deprived of his civic rights. Later he was diagnosed with cancer and left active politics. He died on 26 June 1985.
Family
![Lakshmie Dias Bandaranaike](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Lakshmie_Dias_Bandaranaike.jpg)
Felix Dias Bandaranaike married Elizabeth Muthulakshmi Jayasundera (known as ''Lakshmie Dias Bandaranaike'') in 1953. She is a graduate of the
University of Ceylon
The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...
and Ceylon Law College and later became a member of the
Inner Temple
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...
. They had a daughter named Christine. The family lived in the historic
Maha Nuge Gardens
Maha and MAHA may refer to:
* Maha (name), an Arabic feminine given name
* ''Maha'' (film), a Tamil thriller film
* MaHa, Nepali comedy duo, Madan Krishna Shrestha and Hari Bansha Acharya
* Maha Music Festival, an annual music festival held on th ...
in Colombo and he had his country seat at Weke Walawwa in Kirindawela.
See also
*
List of political families in Sri Lanka
This is a partial listing of prominent political families in Sri Lanka.
Abdul Majeed
* A. L. Abdul Majeed (15 November 1933 – 13 November 1987) also known as Mutur Majeed, former Deputy Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Member Par ...
*
Attempted military coup in Ceylon, 1962
An attempt to commit a crime occurs if a criminal has an intent to commit a crime and takes a substantial step toward completing the crime, but for reasons not intended by the criminal, the final resulting crime does not occur.''Criminal Law - ...
Reading
*''Sri Lanka: Third World Democracy (Studies in Commonwealth Politics and History, No 6)'' by James Jupp
["Publisher: Routledge, Date : 1 edition (20 July 1978), Language: English
, , "]
References
External links
The Bandaranaike AncestryFelix in Parliament and at Parliamentary ConferencesA bold and outstanding politicianExcerpts from the book FDB Official Website of Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bandaranaike, Felix
1930 births
1985 deaths
Finance ministers of Sri Lanka
Sinhalese lawyers
Ceylonese advocates
Bandaranaike Felix
Alumni of the University of Ceylon
Members of the 5th Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 6th Parliament of Ceylon
Members of the 7th Parliament of Ceylon
Sinhalese politicians
Justice ministers of Sri Lanka
Agriculture ministers of Sri Lanka
Home affairs ministers of Sri Lanka
Local government and provincial councils ministers of Sri Lanka
Felix Dias
20th-century Sri Lankan lawyers
Parliamentary secretaries of Ceylon