Prince Sarojini Manmatharajah Charles is a Sri Lankan civil servant who has served as the Governor of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka on two occasions.
P. S. M. Charles | |
|---|---|
| 7th Governor of the Northern Province | |
| In office 17 May 2023 – 23 September 2024 | |
| President | Ranil Wickremesinghe |
| Preceded by | Jeevan Thiagarajah |
| Succeeded by | Nagalingam Vethanayahan |
| In office 30 December 2019 – 11 October 2021 | |
| President | Gotabaya Rajapaksa |
| Preceded by | Suren Raghavan |
| Succeeded by | Jeevan Thiagarajah |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Independent |
| Alma mater | University of Jaffna |
| Occupation | Civil servant |
| Ethnicity | Sri Lankan |
Charles is a Catholic and the daughter of a school principal.[1] She has a degree from the University of Jaffna and masters degrees in disaster management and business administration from the University of Peradeniya and Rajarata University of Sri Lanka.[2][3]
Charles was Additional District Secretary (AGA) for Vavuniya District before becoming District Secretary (GA) for the district in October. She was appointed District Secretary for Batticaloa District in May 2012.[4][5]
Charles was appointed Director General of Sri Lanka Customs in September 2017.[6][7] She was removed from the post in January 2019, allegedly after refusing to give in to government pressure in respect of investigations into 143 suspicious cargo containers.[8][9] She was re-instated swiftly following industrial action by customs workers.[10][11]
Charles was appointed secretary of the Ministry of Healthcare and Indigenous Medical Services in November 2019.[12][13] She was sworn in as Governor of the Northern Province on 30 December 2019.[14][15] In October 2021, Jeevan Thiagarajah replaced her as the new governor of Northern Province.[16] She was reappointed in May 2023 as governor of Northern Province, replacing Thiagarajah.[17]
Upon Anura Kumara Dissanayake taking office as President; Charles resigned. This led to the appointment of Nagalingam Vethanayahan, a former government agent for Jaffna as Governor of Northen Province.[18] [19]
References
edit- ^ Daniel, Shannine (4 February 2018). "An Interview With Sarojini Charles, The DG Of Sri Lanka Customs". Roar Media. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Batticaloa DS appointed Customs DG". The Daily Mirror. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Charles new DG Customs". The Island. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Govt. reshuffles GAs". The Island. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 11 May 2012. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Jaffna GA transferred to Presidential Secretariat - report". Colombo Page. Indianapolis, U.S.A. 10 May 2012. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Batticaloa Government Agent P.S.M. Charles appointed Customs Director General". Daily News. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ Karunaratna, Sanchith (26 September 2017). "Cabinet appoints new Director General of Customs". Ada Derana. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Protests intensify over Customs head appointment". Daily FT. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Charles' Removal Linked To Probe On 143 Containers: Mangala's Coordinating Secretary, Finance Min. Secretary Have Given Unlawful Orders: Sirisena Stirring Up Issues Behind The Scenes". Colombo Telegraph. 2 February 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ Bandara, Kelum (5 February 2019). "P.S.M.Charles reinstated as Customs DG". The Daily Mirror. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "P.S.M. Charles reinstated as Custom's Director General". News First. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 5 February 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "Twenty new Ministry Secretaries appointed". The Island. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "President appoints secretaries to 20 ministries". Colombo Page. Indianapolis, U.S.A. 27 November 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "P.S.M. Charles appointed NP Governor". The Daily Mirror. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 30 December 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
- ^ "Top civil servant Charles appointed Governor NP". The Island. Colombo, Sri Lanka. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
- ^ "Jeevan Thiagarajah sworn in as Northern Province Governor - Latest News | Daily Mirror". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
- ^ "Three provinces get new governors". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- ^ "Media Release – Northern Provincial Council, Sri Lanka". Retrieved 2 October 2024.
- ^ "President appoints new Provincial Governors (Full list)". Newswire. 25 September 2024. Retrieved 2 October 2024.