C D Wickramaratne assumes duties tomorrow as the IGP

Chandana Deepal Wickramaratne will assume duties as the new Inspector-General at police headquarters tomorrow morning.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today appointed him as the IGP. He is the 35th IGP in the Sri Lanka’s police department.

Wickramaratne is the first career intelligence officer to reach the highest position in the police in its 155-year history. He joined the police as career officer of the then National Intelligence Bureau, currently known as the State Intelligence Service (SIS).

He is a student of Ananda College, Colombo and a graduated from the University of Colombo and obtained a M.Sc in Defence Studies and in Management from the Gen. Sir John Kotalawala Defence Academy. He also holds a Post Graduate Diploma from the University of Bradford, England.

He had followed professional courses conducted by the Britain’s MI5 and MI6 and India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

A distinguished officer in the police department with a 33-year unblemished career, he was appointed as the acting IGP following the Easter Sunday attack as the then IGP Pujith Jayasundara was interdicted pending investigations.

Jayasundara retired from the post in March and Wickramaratne continued in the acting capacity till yesterday.

Prior to serving continuously for 19 months as the acting IGP, he had previously functioned as the acting IGP on 13 accessions.

Police sources say a simple ceremony has been arranged tomorrow to mark Wickramaratne assuming duties as the new IGP.