Dudley Senanayake: Political colossus of his time

Dudley Senanayake with Dr. N. M. Perera

Dudley with R. Premadasa

113th birth anniversary falls on June 19, 2026  

• The problems the country faces today show that he was right in his thinking and was a visionary far ahead of his time

The late Dudley’s birthday anniversary falls on  June 19. He was the elder  son of the late D.S. Senanayake, Father of the Nation. He succeeded his father as our second Prime Minister, going on to be Prime Minister again in 1960 and from 1965 to 1970. He was the epitome of democracy in every sense of the term. He was at St Thomas’ College, Mt Lavinia, where he excelled as a cricketer and later at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
He was a reluctant politician and simple in his lifestyle. His hobbies were reading, music, photography and golf. Even as Prime Minister, he would often be seen driving his little Triumph Herald,  and never used official transport for unofficial work. He lived in his own house and all expenses for his home were borne by him. He would also hate to use security to which he was entitled, but they would often follow at a safe distance, of which he was unaware,  intent on protecting him.
An amusing anecdote is that he once travelled to  Nuwara Eliya for golf. Halfway,  his car gave trouble. He got out and sat on a culvert on the road. The security who had followed at a distance unknown to him were surprised when they found him there. Rather reluctantly, with no option, he asked them to take him to N’Eliya and got into their vehicle.
To my late husband, he was a mentor and hero in politics,  and  was by his bedside when Dudley died. This too,  happened because,  although in pain all night, he didn’t want to worry anyone and didn’t inform his brother who lived next door till next morning. His heart attack occurred because of his extreme sensitivity, being harassed and threatened with a breakaway from the Party.
Dudley had a heart of gold. I recall that when he  heard that my husband, at the early age of 30, had been diagnosed with diabetes and had to go to hospital daily to have an injection, Dudley got him a trigger syringe from abroad  which wasn’t available here at the time,  so that he could inject himself. The qualities he had of both head and heart were enormous.
I recently read an interview with him,  in which he had said that he was totally against Buddhist monks entering politics and that he was against nationalisation in any form whatsoever. He also believed in an agricultural economy and was against the Executive Presidency,  which has brought us problems. He was also against the Sinhala Only policy and believed that every citizen should have equal rights whatever their race or religion may be.
The problems the country faces today show that he was right in his thinking and was a visionary far ahead of his time. He had a hearty laugh, and loved his food. In a Parliament of giants --  Dr N.M. Perera, Dr. Colvin R. de Silva, Philip Gunawardena, Pieter Keuneman, etc. --  he stood out with his special brand of wit and humour. He was good friends with all his political foes,  and made no secret of the fact. That was an era of great politicians.
His death was just a couple of years after his defeat in 1970, but caused grief in every part of the country among those even of different political affiliations. The crowd was unprecedented,  and no other politician’s funeral  had drawn such a massive crowd of mourners. When one who had harassed Dudley  came to Woodlands, he was nearly assaulted,  and his brother Robert requested my husband and myself to escort him out through the back, through his house next door.
He will always remain my favourite politician,  and I treasure most nostalgically all I learned from him. He once told me that there is good and bad in us all; we should forget the bad and think only of the good in everyone. His dream was that every Sri Lankan would one day say with pride, “This is my own, my native land.” 
I hope this will be a reality in the not too distant future.