Jathika Vimukthi Peramuna

Not to be confused with Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna.

National Liberation Front ජාතික විමුක්ති පෙරමුණ
Abbreviation	JVP/NLF
Founder	K. M. P. Rajaratne
Founded	1957
Ideology	Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism Anti-communism
Political position	Far-right
Politics of Sri Lanka Political parties Elections

Jathika Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP; National Liberation Front) was a far-right political party in Sri Lanka formed in 1957 by K. M. P. Rajaratne and his wife Kusuma Rajaratne. ^[1] The JVP received support from local businesses, and anti-Tamil riots were extreme in villages in which it was active.

History

Following the 1958 anti-Tamil pogrom, the government of Ceylon banned the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi and the JVP. ^[2] The bans lasted for several months.

Once the bans ended, the JVP contested in democratic elections, and joined the United National Party-led coalition government in 1965. The UNP promised positions to several political parties that were opposed to Marxism. Kusuma Rajaratne was appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary for the Minister of Home Affairs in the Third Dudley Senanayake cabinet, but resigned from the post in 1966 in protest against the Government's decision to introduce new laws to facilitate the official use of Tamil in administration. ^[3]

Electoral history

Sri Lanka Parliamentary Elections

Election year	Votes	Vote %	Seats won	+/–	Government
1960 March	11,201	0.37%	2 / 151	2	Opposition
1960 July	14,030	0.46%	2 / 151		Opposition
1965	18,791	0.46%	1 / 151	1	Coalition (1965–1966)
					Opposition (1966–1970)

References

1. A. Jeyaratnam (2010). Electoral Politics. p. 25.
2. "The Assassination of Bandaranaike", Sri Lanka: The Untold Story.
3. How a Seven Party National "Government was Formed Fifty Years Ago". Daily Mirror SL.