C. Rajadurai

{{Infobox officeholder

|honorific-prefix = Hon.

|name = C. Rajadurai

|native_name = செ. இராசதுரை

|native_name_lang = ta

|honorific-suffix = JP, UM

|image =

|imagesize =

|order1 = Minister of Regional Development

|office1 =

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|order2 = Minister of Hindu Religious Affairs

|office2 =

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|constituency_MP3 = Batticaloa

|parliament3 = Ceylonese

|majority3 =

|term_start3 = 1956

|term_end3 = 1989

|predecessor3 = R. B. Kadramer

|successor3 =

|order4 = 1st

|office4 = Mayor of Batticaloa

|term_start4 = 1967

|term_end4 = 1968

|predecessor4 =

|successor4 = J. L. Tissaveerasinghe

|order5 = Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Malaysia

|office5 =

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|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1927|07|27|df=yes}}

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|party = United National Party

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|footnotes =

|blank1 = Ethnicity

|data1 = Sri Lankan Tamil

}}

Chelliah Rajadurai ({{langx|ta|செல்லையா இராசதுரை}}; born 27 July 1927) is a Sri Lankan Tamil politician and former government minister, Member of Parliament and Mayor of Batticaloa.

Rajadurai was born on 27 July 1927.{{cite web|title=Rajadurai, Chelliah|url=http://www.parliament.lk/en/members-of-parliament/directory-of-past-members/viewMember/2568|publisher=Parliament of Sri Lanka}} Rajadurai was a journalist and a member of the editorial staff of the Sutantiran weekly newspaper.{{cite web|last=Sri Kantha|first=Sachi|title=One Hundred Tamils of the 20th Century: V.Navaratnam|url=http://tamilnation.co/hundredtamils/navaratnam.htm|publisher=Tamil Nation}}

Rajadurai was elected to elected to Parliament at the 1956 parliamentary election as the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi's (Federal Party) candidate for Batticaloa.{{cite web|url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1956%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1956 |publisher=Department of Elections, Sri Lanka |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924115606/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1956%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |archive-date=2015-09-24 }} He was re-elected at the March 1960, July 1960, 1965 and 1970 parliamentary elections.{{cite web|url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1960_03_19%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1960-03-19 |publisher=Department of Elections, Sri Lanka |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712194326/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1960_03_19%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |archive-date=2015-07-12 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1960_07_20%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1960-07-20 |publisher=Department of Elections, Sri Lanka |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924115611/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1960_07_20%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |archive-date=2015-09-24 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1965%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1965 |publisher=Department of Elections, Sri Lanka |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713003440/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1965%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |archive-date=2015-07-13 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1970%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091209231958/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/Results_1970%20GENERAL%20ELECTION.PDF |url-status=dead |archive-date=2009-12-09 |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1970 |publisher=Department of Elections, Sri Lanka }} He was the Tamil United Liberation Front candidate in Batticaloa at the 1977 parliamentary election and was re-elected.{{cite web|url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/General%20Election%201977.PDF |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717002624/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/pdf/General%20Election%201977.PDF |url-status=dead |archive-date=2011-07-17 |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1977 |publisher=Department of Elections, Sri Lanka }} In March 1979 he defected to the United National Party led government and was rewarded by being appointed Minister of Regional Development and Hindu Cultural Affairs.{{cite book|last=Rajasingham|first=K. T.|title=Sri Lanka: The Untold Story|url=http://www.atimes.com/ind-pak/DB16Df06.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020622185747/http://www.atimes.com/ind-pak/DB16Df06.html|url-status=unfit|archive-date=2002-06-22|chapter=Chapter 27: Horsewhip Amirthalingham}}{{cite news|last=Wickramasinghe|first=Wimal|title=Saga of crossovers, expulsions, resignations, terminations, death and by-elections in Sri Lanka|url=http://www.island.lk/2008/01/15/features1.html|newspaper=The Island (Sri Lanka)|date=15 January 2008}}{{cite news|last=Jayawarden|first=Kishali Pinto|title=That conscience Bill coming again|url=http://www.sundaytimes.lk/020407/focus.html|newspaper=The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka)|date=7 April 2002}} He was later appointed Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Malaysia.{{cite news|title=TELO opposes Rajadurai attending Chelva anniversary in Jaffna|url=http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=35120|newspaper=TamilNet|date=23 April 2012}}

Rajadurai became the first Mayor of Batticaloa in 1967.{{cite web|title=History of Municipal Council|url=http://www.batticaloamc.com/page/MC.htm|publisher=Batticaloa Municipal Council|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727192311/http://batticaloamc.com/page/MC.htm|archive-date=2013-07-27}} He was unseated the next year.

Rajadurai was still politically active in April 2012.{{cite news |title=Indian embassy, Chandrahasan, Rajadurai, conspicuous at Chelva memorial in Jaffna |url=https://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=35130 |access-date=24 July 2022 |publisher=Tamil Net |date=27 April 2012}} As of June 2021, Rajadurai is retired and lives between Malaysia, India and Sri Lanka.{{cite news |title=TULF Leader Anandasangaree dared to defy the LTTE |url=https://www.ft.lk/columns/TULF-Leader-Anandasangaree-dared-to-defy-the-LTTE/4-719250 |access-date=24 July 2022 |publisher=FT.lk |date=16 June 2021}}