Pramitha Tennakoon

{{short description|Sri Lankan politician}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific-prefix = Hon.

| name = Premitha Tennakoon

| native_name = {{lang|si|ප්‍රමිත තෙන්නකෝන්}}
பிரமித பண்டார தென்னக்கோன்

| honorific-suffix = MP

| image =

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| office1 = Minister of State for Defence

| president1 = Ranil Wickramasinghe

| primeminister1 = Dinesh Gunawardena

| term_start1 = 8 September 2022

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| successor1 =

| office2 = Minister of Ports and Shipping

| president2 = Gotabaya Rajapaksa

| primeminister2 = Mahinda Rajapaksa

| term_start2 = 18 April 2022

| term_end2 = 9 May 2022

| predecessor2 = Rohitha Abeygunawardena

| successor2 = Nimal Siripala de Silva

| office3 = Member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka

| constituency3 = Matale District

| term_start3 = 2020

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| office4 = Minister for Sports, Youth Affairs, Women's Affairs and Rural Industries Development Central Provincial Council

| constituency4 =

| term_start4 = 2013

| term_end4 = 2018

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| office5 = Council Member Central Provincial Council

| constituency5 = Matale District

| term_start5 = 2009

| term_end5 = 2018

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| birth_name = Premitha Bandara Tennakoon

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1978|09|11|df=y}}

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| party = {{nobr|Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna}}

| otherparty = SLPFA

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| alma_mater = University of Buckingham
La Trobe University

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}}

Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon ({{langx|si|ප්‍රමිත බණ්ඩාර තෙන්නකෝන්}}; born 11 September 1978) is a Sri Lankan politician, former Cabinet Minister, former provincial minister and Member of Parliament.{{cite web |title=Directory of Members: Pramitha Bandara Thennakoon |url=https://www.parliament.lk/en/members-of-parliament/directory-of-members/viewMember/3328 |publisher=Parliament of Sri Lanka |access-date=11 August 2020 |location=Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Sri Lanka}} He served as the Minister of Ports and Shipping in the Cabinet of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.{{cite web |title=President appoints 17 new Cabinet ministers |url=http://www.adaderana.lk/news/81891/president-appoints-new-17-member-cabinet |website=Ada Derana.lk |access-date=April 18, 2022}}

Tennakoon was born on 11 September 1978. He is the son of Janaka Bandara Tennakoon and grandson of T. B. Tennekoon, both government ministers.{{cite news |title=All in the family – father and son duos |url=http://www.sundaytimes.lk/200809/news/all-in-the-family-father-and-son-duos-411766.html |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=The Sunday Times |date=9 August 2020 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}} He was educated at St. Peter's College, Colombo.{{cite news |title=Get to know your new parliamentarians |url=http://www.sundaytimes.lk/200809/news/get-to-know-your-new-parliamentarians-411739.html |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=The Sunday Times |date=9 August 2020 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}} He has a LLB degree from the University of Buckingham and LLM degree from La Trobe University. He was member of the diplomatic staff the Sri Lankan embassy in Cairo, Egypt.

Tennakoon was a member of the Central Provincial Council and Minister for Sports, Youth Affairs, Women's Affairs and Rural Industries Development for the Central Province.{{cite news |last1=Dias |first1=Keshala |title=Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon steps down from post in protest |url=https://www.newsfirst.lk/2017/04/25/pramitha-bandara-tennakoon-steps-post-protest/ |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=News First |date=25 April 2017 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}}{{cite news |title=Thilina Bandara Tennakoon replaces Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon |url=http://www.dailynews.lk/2017/05/03/local/114880/thilina-bandara-tennakoon-replaces-pramitha-bandara-tennakoon |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=Daily News |date=3 May 2017 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}} He contested the 2020 parliamentary election as a Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance electoral alliance candidate in Matale District and was elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka.{{cite magazine |title=Part I : Section (I) — General - Government Notifications - Parliamentary Elections Act, No. 1 of 1981 |magazine=The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary |date=8 August 2020 |issue=2187/26 |page=4A |url=http://www.documents.gov.lk/files/egz/2020/8/2187-26_E.pdf |access-date=9 August 2020 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}}{{cite news |title=Matale district; Janaka Bandara tops |url=http://www.dailymirror.lk/breaking_news/Matale-district-Janaka-Bandara-tops/108-193399 |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=The Daily Mirror |date=7 August 2020 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}}{{cite news |last1=Parasuraman |first1=Lakshme |title=Over 60 new faces in Parliament |url=http://archives1.sundayobserver.lk/2020/08/09/news-features/over-60-new-faces-parliament |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=Sunday Observer |date=9 August 2020 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}}

Following the mass resignation of the Sri Lankan cabinet in the wake of the 2022 Sri Lankan protests, he was appointed as the Minister of Ports and Shipping by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 18 April 2022.{{cite web |last1=Krishnasai |first1=C. |title=Sri Lankan president appoints 17 cabinet ministers amid calls for govt ouster |url=https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/sri-lankan-president-appoints-17-cabinet-ministers-amid-calls-for-govt-ouster-471796 |website=WION News |date=18 April 2022 |access-date=18 April 2022}} He served until 9 May 2022 following another mass resignation of the Sri Lankan cabinet.{{cite web |title=Mahinda Rajapaksa resigns as Prime Minister |url=http://www.adaderana.lk/news.php?nid=82300 |website=Ada Derana |access-date=10 August 2022 |date=9 May 2022 |quote=The PM’s departure also results in the dissolution of the Cabinet.}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;" |+ Electoral history of Pramitha Tennakoon ! scope=col|Election ! scope=col|Constituency ! scope=col colspan="2"|Party ! scope=col colspan="2"|Alliance ! scope=col|Votes ! scope=col|Result
2009 provincial{{cite web |title=Preferences Matale |url=http://www.slelections.gov.lk/Provincial/2009/Central/district/matalepref.pdf |publisher=Department of Elections |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100107125246/http://www.slelections.gov.lk/Provincial/2009/Central/district/matalepref.pdf |archive-date=7 January 2010 |location=Rajagiriya, Sri Lanka |page=1}}	Matale District			style="background:{{party color|United People's Freedom Alliance}};"|	United People's Freedom Alliance	align=right|{{Nts|49665}}	Elected
2013 provincial{{cite news |last1=Keerthiratna |first1=Mahesh |title=Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon tops in Matale |url=http://www.dailymirror.lk/breaking_news/pramitha-bandara-tennakoon-tops-in-matale/108-35838 |access-date=13 August 2020 |work=The Daily Mirror |date=22 September 2013 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}}	Matale District			style="background:{{party color|United People's Freedom Alliance}};"|	United People's Freedom Alliance	align=right|{{Nts|51591}}	Elected
2020 parliamentary	Matale District	style="background:{{party color|Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna}};"|	Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna	style="background:{{party color|Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance}};"|	Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance	align=right|{{Nts|67776}}	Elected
2024 parliamentary{{Cite web |title=Prominent former MPs lose out as 2024 General Election results roll in |url=http://www.adaderana.lk/news.php?nid=103492 |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=www.adaderana.lk |language=en}}	Matale District	|		style="background:{{party color|New Democratic Front (Sri Lanka)}};"|	New Democratic Front		Not elected