Anthony at 17:02, 17 January 2026

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{{Short description|Sri Lankan Tamil politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix = [[The Honourable|Hon.]]
| name = M. Sivasithamparam
| image = Murugesu Sivasithamparam.jpg
| office = [[Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka|Deputy Speaker]], [[House of Representatives of Ceylon]]
| predecessor = [[Razik Fareed]]
| successor = I. A. Cader
| term_start = 8 March 1968
| term_end = 25 March 1970
| office2 = Leader, [[Tamil United Liberation Front]]
| term_start2 = 1989
| term_end2 = 2002
| predecessor2 = [[A. Amirthalingam]]
| successor2 = [[V. Anandasangaree]]
| office3 = President, [[Tamil United Liberation Front]]
| term_start3 = 1978
| term_end3 = 2002
| predecessor3 =
| successor3 = [[V. Anandasangaree]]
| constituency_MP4 = [[Udupiddy Electoral District|Udupiddy]]
| parliament4 = Ceylonese
| majority4 =
| predecessor4 =
| successor4 = [[K. Jeyakody]], [[Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi|ITAK]]
| term_start4 = 1960
| term_end4 = 1970
| constituency_MP5 = [[Nallur Electoral District|Nallur]]
| parliament5 = Ceylonese
| majority5 =
| predecessor5 = [[C. Arulampalam]], [[All Ceylon Tamil Congress|ACTC]]
| successor5 =
| term_start5 = 1977
| term_end5 = 1983
| constituency_MP6 = [[National List Member of Parliament|National List]]
| parliament6 = Sri Lankan
| majority6 =
| predecessor6 =
| successor6 = [[K. Thurairetnasingam]], [[Tamil National Alliance|TNA]]
| term_start6 = 2001
| term_end6 = 2002
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1923|7|20}}
| birth_place = [[Karaveddy]], [[British Ceylon]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2002|6|5|1923|7|20}}
| death_place = Colombo National Hospital, [[Colombo]], [[Sri Lanka]]
| citizenship =
| nationality = {{flagicon|Sri Lanka}} [[Sri Lanka]]n
| party = [[Tamil United Liberation Front]]
| otherparty = [[Tamil National Alliance]]
| spouse =
| partner =
| relations =
| children =
| residence =
| alma_mater = Vigneswara College<br />[[St. Joseph's College, Colombo|St. Joseph's College]]<br />[[Ceylon University College]]<br />[[Colombo Law College]]
| occupation =
| profession = Lawyer
| blank1= Ethnicity
| data1= [[Sri Lankan Tamil]]
| website =
| signature =
| footnotes =
}}
'''Murugesu Sivasithamparam''' (20 July 1923 – 5 June 2002) was a leading [[Sri Lankan Tamil]] politician, [[Member of Parliament]] and [[Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka|Deputy Speaker]].

==Early life==
Sivasithamparam was born 20 July 1923 in [[Karaveddy]] in northern province of [[Ceylon]]. He was educated at Vigneswara College, Karaveddy and [[St. Joseph's College, Colombo]]. He later studied at [[Ceylon University College]] and [[Colombo Law College]]. After graduation he joined the legal profession, becoming an [[advocate]]. He appeared as [[defence counsel]] in many criminal cases.

Sivasithamparam married Sarathadevi, daughter of Ponnambalam. They had a son (Sathyendra) and a daughter (Niranjali).

==Political career==
Sivasithamparam came under the influence of [[communism]] and [[Marxism]] while studying at Ceylon University College. He was a supporter of [[P. Kandiah]], a leading communist from Karaveddy. His support for communism gradually declined and he took up [[Sri Lankan Tamil nationalism]] instead.

Sivasithamparam stood as an [[Independent (politician)|independent]] candidate for [[Point Pedro Electoral District|Point Pedro]] at the [[1956 Ceylonese parliamentary election|1956 parliamentary election]] but failed to get elected.<ref>{{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 }}</ref> He joined the [[All Ceylon Tamil Congress]] (ACTC) in 1958. A delimitation commission in the late 1950s created a new electoral district for [[Udupiddy Electoral District|Udupiddy]] from parts of Point Pedro. Sivasithamparam stood as the ACTC candidate in the new electoral district at the [[March 1960 Ceylonese parliamentary election|March 1960 parliamentary election]]. He won the election and entered [[Parliament of Ceylon|Parliament]].<ref>{{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 }}</ref> He was re-elected at the [[July 1960 Ceylonese parliamentary election|July 1960]] and [[1965 Ceylonese parliamentary election|1965]] parliamentary elections.<ref>{{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 }}</ref><ref>{{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 }}</ref>

Sivasithamparam took part in the 1961 [[satyagraha]] organised by the [[Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi]] (Federal Party). He served as "postman" for the Tamil Postal Service set-up as part of the civil disobedience campaign, delivering by motorcycle a letter informing the Jaffna police superintendent of the illegal postal service. He was assaulted by soldiers whilst trying to women taking part in the satyagraha and was hospitalised for days.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Sivasithamparam served as [[Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka|Deputy Speaker]] between 1968 and 1970.<ref>{{cite web|title=Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees |url=http://www.parliament.lk/handbook_of_parliament/deputy_speakers.jsp |work=Handbook of Parliament |publisher=[[Parliament of Sri Lanka]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101126205929/http://parliament.lk/handbook_of_parliament/deputy_speakers.jsp |archive-date=2010-11-26 }}</ref> He stood for re-election in Udupiddy at the [[1970 Ceylonese parliamentary election|1970 parliamentary election]] but was defeated by the ITAK candidate.<ref>{{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 }}</ref> In 1972 the ACTC, ITAK and others formed the [[Tamil United Front]] (later renamed [[Tamil United Liberation Front]]). Sivasithamparam was elected vice president of TUF in 1972.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Sivasithamparam was delivering leaflets along with other leading Tamil politicians ([[A. Amirthalingam]], [[V. N. Navaratnam]], [[K. P. Ratnam]] and [[K. Thurairatnam]]) in 1976 when they were all arrested on government orders. Sivasithamparam was released but the others were taken to Colombo and tried for [[sedition]]. All the defendants were acquitted after a famous [[trial at bar]] case in which 72 Tamil lawyers including [[S. J. V. Chelvanayakam]] and [[G. G. Ponnambalam]] acted for the defence.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Sivasithamparam was the TULF's candidate for [[Nallur Electoral District|Nallur]] at the [[1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary election|1977 parliamentary election]] which he won with the largest majority in the country.<ref>{{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 }}</ref> The TULF became the largest opposition party in Parliament and Sivasithamparam became deputy leader of the opposition. Sivasithamparam was elected president of the TULF in 1978.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

During the 1983 [[Black July]] riots, Sivasithamparam's home and cars in Norris Canal Road, Colombo were burnt. Sivasithamparam was away in [[Mannar, Sri Lanka|Mannar]] but his family were home. They escaped unharmed.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Sivasithamparam and all other TULF MPs boycotted Parliament from the middle of 1983 for a number of reasons: they were under pressure from [[Sri Lankan Tamil militant groups|Sri Lankan Tamil militants]] not to stay in Parliament beyond their normal six-year term; the Sixth Amendment to the [[Constitution of Sri Lanka]] required them to swear an oath unconditionally renouncing support for a [[Tamil Eelam|separate state]]; and the Black July riots in which up to 3,000 Tamils were murdered by [[Sinhalese people|Sinhalese]] mobs. After three months of absence, Sivasithamparam forfeited his seat in Parliament on 22 October 1983.<ref>{{cite news|last=Wickramasinghe|first=Wimal|title=Saga of crossovers, expulsions and resignations etc. Referendum for {{sic|exten|tion|nolink=y}} of Parliament|url=http://www.island.lk/2008/01/18/features11.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080122123208/http://www.island.lk/2008/01/18/features11.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 January 2008|newspaper=The Island, Sri Lanka|date=18 January 2008}}</ref> His refusal to take the oath under the Sixth Amendment also barred him from practising as a lawyer.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Sivasithamparam and his family, like many families of leading Tamil politicians, fled to [[Madras]] (now Chennai), [[Tamil Nadu]] in India. [[M. G. Ramachandran]], the [[List of Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu|Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu]], gave the family a flat to stay in. Whilst in India Sivasithamparam took part in numerous peace talks. After the signing of the [[Indo-Sri Lanka Accord]] in 1987 Sivasithamparam returned to Sri Lanka. He was one of the TULF's candidates in [[Jaffna Electoral District|Jaffna District]] at the [[1989 Sri Lankan parliamentary election|1989 parliamentary election]] but failed to get elected. Sivasithamparam survived an assassination attempt on 13 July 1989 but A. Amirthalingam and [[V. Yogeswaran]], his fellow TULF leaders, were killed in the incident. Sivasithamparam had been shot in the chest and spent a long time in hospital recovering. He took on the leadership of the TULF following the assassination of Amirthalingam.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

He was one of the TULF's candidates in [[Vanni Electoral District|Vanni District]] at the [[1994 Sri Lankan parliamentary election|1994 parliamentary election]] but again failed to get elected. He took part in further peace talks in the late 1990s. Ill health and failure of peace talks forced him to return to Tamil Nadu.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

In 2001 the TULF, ACTC, [[Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front]] and [[Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization]] formed the [[Tamil National Alliance]] (TNA). Sivasithamparam, the elder statesman of Sri Lankan Tamil politics, returned to Sri Lanka in 2001 when he was appointed as a [[National List Member of Parliament]] for the TNA in December 2001.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

==Death==
Sivasithamparam died on 5 June 2002 after a brief illness.<ref>{{cite news|title=Senior Tamil leader Sivasithamparam dead|url=http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=7024|newspaper=[[TamilNet]]|date=5 June 2002}}</ref> His funeral took place in Karaveddy on 9 June 2002.<ref>{{cite news|title=Sivasithamparam's funeral in Jaffna|url=http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=7027|newspaper=[[TamilNet]]|date=5 June 2002}}</ref>

==References==
* {{cite book|last=Arumugam|first=S.|title=Dictionary of Biography of the Tamils of Ceylon|year=1997|pages=204–205}}
* {{cite news|last=D. B. S. Jeyaraj|author-link=|title=Life and times of Sivasithamparam|url=http://www.tamilcanadian.com/page.php?cat=52&id=722|newspaper=[[The Sunday Leader]]|date=9 June 2002}}
{{Reflist}}

{{Members of 4th Parliament of Ceylon}}
{{Members of 5th Parliament of Ceylon}}
{{Members of 6th Parliament of Ceylon}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sivasithamparam, M.}}
[[Category:1923 births]]
[[Category:2002 deaths]]
[[Category:All Ceylon Tamil Congress politicians]]
[[Category:Alumni of Saint Joseph's College, Colombo]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Ceylon University College]]
[[Category:Ceylonese advocates]]
[[Category:Deputy chairmen of committees of the Parliament of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Deputy speakers and chairmen of committees of the Parliament of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Members of the 4th Parliament of Ceylon]]
[[Category:Members of the 5th Parliament of Ceylon]]
[[Category:Members of the 6th Parliament of Ceylon]]
[[Category:Members of the 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Members of the 12th Parliament of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan Hindus]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan lawyers]]
[[Category:Tamil National Alliance politicians]]
[[Category:Tamil United Liberation Front politicians]]
[[Category:People of the Sri Lankan civil war]]
[[Category:Indian Peace Keeping Force]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan Tamil politicians]]

M. Sivasithamparam - Revision history

Anthony at 17:02, 17 January 2026