Passed GCE ‘A’ Level, Ll.B and Ll.M in uniform

In an unprecedented achievement in the 158-year history of the Sri Lanka Police, Priyantha Weerasooriya has been appointed the country’s 37th Inspector General of Police (IGP), becoming the first ever to rise from the rank of Police Constable to the very top of the force.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s nomination received the green light from the Constitutional Council on Tuesday (12), with the official letter of appointment handed over on Wednesday (13) at the Presidential Secretariat by Presidential Secretary Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake.

Born in Dodangoda in 1969, Weerasooriya joined the police service in 1988 as a young constable. While in uniform, he pursued his education, completing his GCE Advanced Level examinationbefore earning a promotion to Sub-Inspector in 1992.

He climbed the ranks steadily, becoming an Assistant Superintendent of Police in 1999, Superintendent in 2007, Senior Superintendent in 2012, Deputy Inspector General in 2016, and Senior DIG in 2020.

His 36-year career spans key assignments in Crime, Traffic, the STF, and the Supplies Division, as well as United Nations peacekeeping missions in East Timor and Haiti. A law graduate of the University of Colombo, he also holds an LLM from the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University.

Weerasooriya’s appointment follows the removal of former IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon through a parliamentary motion. Serving as Acting IGP since September 2024, he has launched a string of initiatives targeting organized crime and improving police welfare.The history-making police chief ceremonially assumed his new duties on Thursday morning (14).