Senior Deputy Inspector General (SDIG) Priyantha Weerasooriya, currently in charge of the North Central Province, is expected to be appointed as the Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) today. This comes after the suspension of IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon.
Although SDIG Lalith Pathinayake, who oversees the Police Administration Division, was initially considered for the role, the government has chosen Weerasooriya instead. This decision is linked to ongoing investigations into the 2019 Easter attacks. Despite Pathinayake not being directly charged, the government wants to avoid complications as he was in charge of a region related to the incident.
Priyantha Weerasooriya’s career is remarkable. He began his service as a police constable and worked his way up to the rank of Senior DIG. His potential appointment would make him the first officer in the 158-year history of Sri Lanka's police department to rise from constable to IGP.
