S. Dharmaretnam | |
|---|---|
| Member of the State Council of Ceylon | |
| In office 1938–1943 | |
| Preceded by | S. O. Canagaratnam |
| Constituency | Batticaloa South |
| Personal details | |
| Died | 1952 Colombo,Ceylon |
| Ethnicity | Ceylon Tamil |
Andrew Sabapathipillai Dharmaretnam (died 1952) was a Ceylon Tamil politician and member of the State Council of Ceylon.
Dharmaretnam had been a Vanniyar since the age of 17. [1] He and his brother Rajaratnam owned large pieces of land in the old Batticaloa District,from Verugal to Pottuvil. [2] Dharmaretnam's son Puvirajakeerthi (known as Keerthy or Dharmakeerthy) was one of the first Batticaloa Tamils to attend the University of Cambridge. [2] Dharmaretnam was the paternal grandfather of Taraki Sivaram,a journalist murdered during the Sri Lankan Civil War. [2] [3]
Dharmaretnam was elected to the State Council of Ceylon in September 1938 following the death of S. O. Canagaratnam. [2] [4] [5] He represented the Batticaloa South constituency until November 1943 when he resigned due to ill-health. [2] [6]
Dharmaretnam was in an abusive relationship with his wife Alagamma and was known to have had extra-marital affairs. [1] After slitting his wrist Dharmaretnam went to into the jungle to die. [1] He didn't die and was found a few days later in a jungle clearing,delirious,his physical and mental health irrecoverably damaged. [1] Sick and dependent on others,he died seven years later in 1952 at a Colombo hospital. [1]