N. Q. Dias

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

N.Q. Dias
Born
Neil Quintus Dias

Panadura, British Ceylon
Died
Sri Lanka
NationalitySri Lankan

Neil Quintus Dias commonly known as N.Q. Dias, was a

Ceylon's High Commissioner to India from 1970 to 1972.[1]

A Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist, N.Q. Dias was known for planning and executing many of the Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist policies of the Bandaranaike's Freedom Party.[2][3]

Education

Born in Panadura, Dias was educated at Trinity College, Kandy. He graduated from the University of London, gaining a BA degree and was enrolled as a barrister from the Middle Temple.[4]

Civil service

Passing the Ceylon Civil Service (CCS) entrance exam, Dias was appointed to the CCS as a cadet by the

Registrar of Lands and of Marriages, Births and Deaths.[4] Following the election of S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, Dias was appointed first Director of Cultural Affairs in 1956, serving until 1959.[5]

Nationalism

An ardent nationalist, Dias was noted for wearing national dress since 1949, which was uncommon for a CCS officer. He was a founder member of the board of management of the Sri Sumangala Schools in 1945.[6] He established close ties with the Buddhist clergy and he was the founding President of the Government Services Buddhist Association and an officer bearer of the Public Services and Local Government Services Buddhist Societies Federation formed in 1954.[7]

Although a member of the civil service and as such required to be politically neutral, Dias was a silent strategist uniting all the local Buddhist chapters (Nikayas) under the Eksath Bhikku Peramuna and helped forged the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, a four-party coalition with a no-contest pact with the Lanka Sama Samaja Party and the Communist Party of Sri Lanka, led by Bandaranaike. Mahajana Eksath Peramuna won a landslide victory in the 1956 general elections, defeating the United National Party and paving the way for Bandaranaike to become prime minister. In the years that followed, he became disappointed in Bandaranaike for his limited nationalist reforms.[8]

Bandaranaike's adviser

Following the

attempted military coup in 1962.[9]

Permanent Secretary of External Affairs and Defence

He was appointed

Permanent Secretary of Defence and Foreign Affairs on 1 June 1961.[10] In this capacity he implemented policies to change the composition of the army to match the demographically ratios of the population, increasing the number of Sinhala Buddhist officers in the armed forces.[11]

Curbing Tamil protests

In April 1961, Bandaranaike declared a state of emergency in the northern province and ordered the army to clear the Satyagraha organized by the Tamil Federal Party against the Language policy of the government. In response to this incident and

Pooneryn, Karainagar, Palaly, Point Pedro, Elephant Pass, Mullaitivu and Trincomalee
to counter possible rise of Tamil separatism.

In July 1963, Dias further instructed the Government Agent of Jaffna, Neville Jayaweera, to "force ‘confrontations’ upon the Tamil leaders at every turn possible, and to establish the government’s ‘absolute ascendency’ over them in every crisis.”[12]

He further expanded Operations Monti to create the Task Force Anti Illicit Immigration (TFAII) in 1963 to counter illegal immigration from South India. The TFAII would function from 1963 to 1981 when it was terminated with the on set of the Sri Lankan Civil War.[8]

Later life

He retired in 1965, following the defeat of Bandaranaike in the election that year. In 1966, he was arrested and tried for the involvement in an

Ceylon's High Commissioner to India
, serving till 1972.

See also

References

  1. ^ Former Sri Lankan Envoys to India Archived 2011-07-28 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ISBN 978-0-521-13378-4
    .
  3. ^ The Untold Story Chapter 18: Srimavo - weeping arrogance
  4. ^ a b Government of Ceylon (1954). The Ceylon Civil List, 1954. Ceylon Government Press. p. 35.
  5. ^ Former Directors
  6. ^ "SRI SUMANGALA SCHOOLS". lawnet.gov.lk. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  7. ^ Historical Sketch About GSBA
  8. ^ a b Jayaweera, Neville. "The making of a nationalist Experiences that shaped NQ's nationalist resolve". The Island. The Island. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  9. ^ Jeyaraj, DBS. "50th ANNIVERSARY OF ABORTIVE COUP D'ETAT CONSPIRACY IN JANUARY 1962". Daily Mirror. Daily Mirror. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  10. ^ 1963 Ferguson's Ceylon Directory. Ferguson's Directory. 1963. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  11. ^ Jayaweera, Neville. "A memorable evening with General Sir John Kotalawala PC, KBE, CH, K.StJ Prime Minister of Ceylon 1951-1956". Island. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
  12. ISBN 978-955-1468-95-8
    .
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=N._Q._Dias&oldid=1219812829"