“Bharatha's demise is an irreparable loss to the trade union movement, Presidential Secretariat and the country as a whole”, said President Mahinda Rajapaksa in his Message of Condolences on the death of Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra, former MP and Presidential Director General of Trade Union Affairs.

“A close friend of the people, he was always loved and admired by them, and he prided himself on this. He had an abiding passion for serving the people who elected him a Member of Pradeshiya Sabha, Provincial Council, and then Parliament”, he further noted. “His contribution as a leader in the Labour Movement who stood by the people’s rights, was an immense strength for us”, the President added.

Here is the full text of the Message of Condolences :

I was deeply grieved by the sudden demise of Mr. Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra, former MP and Presidential Director General of Trade Union Affairs. This was due to the political relations as well as close friendship that we shared.

A close friend of the people, he was always loved and admired by them, and he prided himself on this. He had an abiding passion for serving the people who elected him a Member of Pradeshiya Sabha, Provincial Council, and then Parliament.

He became a notable leader in the Trade Union Movement. His contribution as a leader in the Labour Movement who stood by the people’s rights, was an immense strength for us.

It will be in my memory forever the assistance rendered by Mr. Premachandra to me within and outside Cabinet on my journey from being a Member of Parliament to Presidency. The way he interacted with me with mutual corporation has left an indelible mark in my memory. After I was elected Prime Minister, I presented the first Cabinet Paper proposing Bharatha as the PM’s Director General of Trade Union Affairs.

Subsequently, together with me, he rendered a significant service to the public by holding his office at the Presidential Secretariat where he met with the public, until his demise.

Mr. Premachandra received his education at Ananda College, Colombo. With his father’s influence, he was drawn to leftist politics, and in 1979, was elected a Member of the Kolonnawa Urban Council. Later, he joined the Sri Lanka Mahajana Party, and became its organizer for Kolonnawa.

Representing the party in the first Provincial Council election in Sri Lanka, he became a PC member in the United Socialist Alliance.

He was first elected to Parliament following the 1994 General Election as a member of the Mahajana Party for the Colombo district. Having joined the People’s Alliance, he represented the people in Parliament as an Opposition Member in 2000.

In Parliament, Bharatha was a very popular figure among both Government and Opposition MPs alike, and his friendliness was appreciated by everyone.

Bharatha's demise is an irreparable loss to the trade union movement, Presidential Secretariat and the country as a whole. I am aware that doing justice by all this and the people he loved will be a cause for relief to all those who loved him.

I convey my deep condolences to his bereaved wife Mrs. Sumana Premachandra, daughter Hirunika, son Yohan, relatives and the people of Kolonnawa.

I wish my friend Bharatha Lakshman Premachndra may attain nibbana.