Ministry of Home Affairs (Sri Lanka)

Ministry of Home Affairs
ස්වදේශ කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශය
உள்நாட்டலுவல்கள் அமைச்சு
Ministry overview
Formed 1931
Jurisdiction Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Headquarters Independence Square, Colombo 07
6.903524°N 79.869168°E / 6.903524; 79.869168
Annual budget
  • LKR 27 billion (2016, recurrent)
  • LKR 5 billion (2016, capital)
Minister responsible
  • Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government
Ministry executive
  • S. T. Kodikara, Ministry Secretary
Child agencies
Website moha.gov.lk

The Ministry of Home Affairs (Sinhala: ස්වදේශ කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශය Swadēsha Katayuthu Amathyanshaya; Tamil: உள்நாட்டலுவல்கள் அமைச்சு) is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for public administration.

The Minister of Home Affairs is one of the most senior ministers in the government and ranks third in the ministerial ranking. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on home affairs and other subjects which come under its purview. The ministry manages the country's administrative service, including District and Divisional Secretariats as well as the Grama Niladhari (village officers) network under the oversight of the latter.

The current Minister of Home Affairs is Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena.

Ministers

Ministers of Home Affairs
Name Portrait Party Took office Left office Head of government Ministerial title Refs
Don Baron Jayatilaka 1931 1942 Minister of Home Affairs
Arunachalam Mahadeva 1942 1946
Oliver Goonetilleke 26 September 1947 D. S. Senanayake Minister of Home Affairs and Rural Development
Edwin Wijeyeratne 1948 1951
Oliver Goonetilleke 1952 Dudley Senanayake
A. Ratnayake Minister of Home Affairs
1953 John Kotelawala
A. P. Jayasuriya 12 April 1956 June 1959 S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike
T. B. Ilangaratne Sri Lanka Freedom Party 26 September 1959 8 December 1959 W. Dahanayake
M. C. M. Kaleel United National Party 23 March 1960 1960 Dudley Senanayake Minister of Home Affairs and Rural Development
Maithripala Senanayake Sri Lanka Freedom Party 23 July 1960 Sirimavo Bandaranaike Minister of Industries, Home and Cultural Affairs
W. Dahanayake Sri Lanka Freedom Socialist Party March 1965 Dudley Senanayake Minister of Home Affairs
Felix Dias Bandaranaike align=center Sri Lanka Freedom Party 31 May 1970 Sirimavo Bandaranaike Minister of Public Administration, Local Government and Home Affairs
T. B. Ilangaratne Sri Lanka Freedom Party Minister of Public Administration and Home Affairs
Montague Jayawickrama United National Party 23 July 1977 J. R. Jayewardene
K. W. Devanayakam United National Party 14 February 1980 Minister of Home Affairs
Festus Perera United National Party 1990 Ranasinghe Premadasa Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Home Affairs
Amarasiri Dodangoda Sri Lanka Freedom Party 1994 D. B. Wijetunga Minister of Home Affairs, Local Government and Co-operatives
Richard Pathirana Sri Lanka Freedom Party 19 October 2000 14 September 2001 Chandrika Kumaratunga Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs and Administrative Reforms
14 September 2001 Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils, Local Government and Southern Development
Alick Aluvihare United National Party 12 December 2001 Minister of Home Affairs and Local Government
Amarasiri Dodangoda Sri Lanka Freedom Party 10 April 2004 Minister of Public Administration and Home Affairs
Sarath Amunugama Sri Lanka Freedom Party 23 November 2005 Mahinda Rajapaksa
Karu Jayasuriya United National Party 28 January 2007 9 December 2008
Sarath Amunugama Sri Lanka Freedom Party 1 January 2009
John Seneviratne Sri Lanka Freedom Party 23 April 2010
M. Joseph Michael Perera United National Party 12 January 2015 22 March 2015 Maithripala Sirisena Minister of Home Affairs and Fisheries
22 March 2015 17 August 2015 Minister of Home Affairs
Vajira Abeywardena United National Party 4 September 2015 21 November 2019
Janaka Bandara Tennakoon Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna 22 November 2019 3 April 2022 Gotabaya Rajapaksa Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government
Dinesh Gunawardena Mahajana Eksath Peramuna 18 April 2022 Incumbent Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government


Secretaries

Home Affairs Secretaries
Name Took office Left office Title Refs
D. Dissanayake 25 April 2010 Public Administration and Home Affairs Secretary
P. B. Abeykoon 22 November 2010 Public Administration and Home Affairs Secretary
S. D. A. B. Borelessa 19 January 2015 Home Affairs and Fisheries Secretary
J. J. Rathnasiri 8 September 2015 31 July 2016 Home Affairs Secretary
Neil De Alwis 4 September 2016 Home Affairs Secretary
S. T. Kodikara 17 April 2018 Home Affairs Secretary