An ardent cricket enthusiast, Perera actively participated in the sport during his school years. He was a member of the college's first XI team and eventually became its captain.[11][12] He led the team in the Battle of the Maroonsbig match against Ananda College in 1960, which ended in a draw.[13]
Perera's political career began in 1968 when as a member of the United National Party he began to participate in local government politics.[1][3] He quickly rose through the ranks of the party, attracting the attention of the party leadership, which enlisted him into national politics in 1973.[7]
In the 1977 elections, which saw a resounding victory for the UNP, he secured his initial parliamentary seat representing the Katugampola constituency.[14] Subsequently in 1982, then President J. R. Jayewardene appointed Perera to the position of District Minister of Kurunegala in his cabinet.[15]
With the advent of the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord and the establishment of Provincial Councils in Sri Lanka, Perera briefly left national politics to pursue a role in regional governance. In 1988, he contested and triumphed in the provincial council elections for the North Western Province, and as a result, he became the inaugural Chief Minister of the North Western Province.[3][7]
Returning to national politics in the 1994 elections, Perera emerged victorious from the Kurunegala District.[16] Throughout much of his tenure in parliament, he found himself situated on the opposition benches, apart from a brief interlude when he served as Minister of Irrigation and Water Management under the Chandrika Kumaratungaadministration in 2001.[17] These dynamics of his political involvement experienced a shift with the election of Maithripala Sirisena in 2015 and the establishment of a UNP-led administration.[18] During this period, Perera assumed various ministerial portfolios, including the Minister of Food Security, the Minister of Sustainable Development and Wildlife, and the Minister of Buddha Sasana.[7]
Following a constitutional crisis in 2018, Perera and his colleagues in the sitting administration faced temporary dismissal from their governmental posts under the short-lived Sirisena-Rajapaksa-led government.[19] However, subsequent no confidence motions and Supreme Court rulings led to their reinstatement.[20] Perera resumed his duties as Minister of Buddha Sasana and was additionally entrusted with the portfolio of Minister of Wayamba Development.[7] However, following the election of Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2019 and the formation of a Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP)-led government, he opted to depart from governmental responsibilities and chose not to seek re-election in 2020.[21]
In 2021, he deviated from the party line by openly criticizing UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. Perera alleged that Wickremesinghe was attempting to broker a deal with the then-incumbent SLPP-led government. Furthermore, he lamented the significant losses suffered by the UNP in the 2020 parliamentary elections.[22][23]
Perera married Rohini Perera and they had two children, with one of his children being a former Provincial Council member, Asanga Jayawickrama Perera. He was a devout Buddhist.[24][25]
Perera died on 17 February 2024, at the age of 83 in his residence situated in Kurunegala.[1] He had been seriously ill for some time at the time of his death.[26]
^Abayasinghe, Shiromi; Vimalaweera, Nirushi (13 January 2015). "Cabinet of the New Government". Dinamina (in Sinhala). Archived from the original on 18 February 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
^Manjula Fernando (2020). "28th Battle of the Maroons". 28th Battle of the Maroons. Archived from the original on 20 November 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
^Manjula Fernando (2020). "31st Battle of the Maroons". Battle of the Maroons. Archived from the original on 20 November 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
^"Sri Lanka Year Book 1982"(PDF). Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka. 1982. pp. 12–14. Archived(PDF) from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
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