Ranil Wickremesinghe

Early life and education

Born on 24 March 1949 in Colombo, Wickremesinghe was the second son of Esmond Wickremesinghe and Nalini Wickremesinghe née Wijewardena. His father was a lawyer who became a press baron taking over the Lake House Group of newspapers. His grandfathers were Cyril Wickremesinghe of the Ceylon Civil Service and the press baron, D. R. Wijewardhena.

Wickremesinghe was educated at the Royal Preparatory School and at the Royal College, Colombo where he was a classmate and friend of Anura Bandaranaike, son of then Prime Minister S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike; and Dinesh Gunawardena, son of socialist leader Philip Gunawardena. Wickremesinghe entered the Faculty of Law of the University of Ceylon at its Colombo Campus which is now the University of Colombo. After graduation, he completed the law exams at the Ceylon Law College and took oaths as an advocate in 1972 after having apprenticed under H. W. Jayewardene, QC. He became an Attorney at law following the changes to the legal profession in 1973. Wickremesinghe received an honorary doctorate from Deakin University in Australia on 14 February 2017 for his significant contributions in reforms in economy, education and human rights.

Political career

Wickremesinghe joined the United National Party (UNP) and progressed through its ranks. He was appointed the chief organizer of the Kelaniya Electorate in the mid-1970s, and was later appointed the chief organizer of the Biyagama Electorate, which he won in the 1977 parliamentary elections and entered parliament. He was appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in the new government of J. R. Jayewardene, and was soon promoted to the post of Minister of Youth Affairs & Employment on 5 October 1977, which made him the youngest cabinet minister of Sri Lanka. During his term as minister, he initiated the Sri Lanka National Guard and the National Youth Services Council (NYSCO), which provides vocational and career training to school leavers. Wickremesinghe was later made the Minister of Education on 14 February 1980.

Under the presidency of Ranasinghe Premadasa, Wickremesinghe was appointed the Minister of Industry on 18 February 1989, under which he initiated industrial reforms and established the Biyagama Special Economic Zone. In 1990, he was given the additional portfolios of Science and Technology. Wickremesinghe had competition from his senior colleagues in the UNP, Lalith Athulathmudali and Gamini Dissanayake, who had been rivals of President Premadasa. He was appointed Leader of the House in 1989.

First premiership (1993–1994)

On 7 May 1993, Wickremesinghe was sworn in as prime minister after President Ranasinghe Premadasa was assassinated by the Tamil Tigers and Prime Minister D. B. Wijetunga was appointed president. During his ephemeral term, he was credited with pushing the country through an impressive economic transformation and was generally backed by the business community.

Opposition (1994–2001)

In the 1994 parliamentary elections, the UNP lost to Chandrika Kumaratunga's People's Alliance (PA), and Kumaratunga was appointed Prime Minister of the country. Wickremesinghe was defeated in the race for Opposition Leader by two votes by fellow UNP member Gamini Dissanayake, who had re-joined the party. This gave Gamini Dissanayake the default leadership of the party and made him the presidential nominee of the UNP. The UNP was progressing well under Gamini Dissanayake's leadership when he too was assassinated by the Tamil Tigers. Gamini Dissanayake's widow, Srima Dissanayake replaced him as the candidate of the UNP in the 1994 election. Securing just 35% of the vote, she lost to Chandrika Kumaratunga in every electorate except Mahiyangana. Afterwards, Wickremesinghe was appointed the opposition leader as well as the UNP leader.

Wickremesinghe was seen as a cooperative opposition leader who gave the government a chance to carry out its agenda in its early days.

In the 1999 presidential election, Wickremesinghe was nominated as the UNP presidential candidate. After a tense election campaign in the wake of the violent North Western Provincial Council election, the Tamil Tigers carried out a suicide bomb attack in an election campaign rally, in which President Kumaratunga lost her right eye. Voting was held two days later on 21 December 1999 and amidst a wave of sympathy, Kumaratunga was re-elected to a second term with 51% of the popular vote. After this electoral loss, Wickremesinghe unsuccessfully led his party in the 2000 parliamentary elections, again losing out to the PA.

Second premiership (2001–2004)

In the 2001 parliamentary elections, Wickremesinghe led the newly formed United National Front (UNF) to victory, winning 109 seats compared to the PA's 77 seats. Consequently, Wickremesinghe was able to form a new UNF government and sworn as the 17th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka on 9 December 2001. Chandrika Kumaratunga still remained the president of the country. This led to a confusing situation where the president and the prime minister were from two opposing parties. Although, according to the constitution, the president was both head of state and head of government, Wickremesinghe was able to appoint his own cabinet and he had the actual control over the government. President Chandrika Kumaratunga also chaired cabinet meetings as de facto head, but her influence over decision making was strictly limited.

During his second premiership, Wickremesinghe proposed to initiate the "Western Region Megapolis" project. Planned with the assistance of architects and town planners of a Singaporean firm CESMA, it proposed to build a large new city in the western province that can rival major cities in the world. However, the project did not proceed after the end of his government. He also requested the international community to assist in development during the ceasefire – the Tokyo Donor Conference on Reconstruction and Development of Sri Lanka was held in June 2003, during which Sri Lanka received more than 4.5 billion dollars in reconstruction and development aid.

Wickremesinghe's foreign policy during his tenure as prime minister pushed closer relations with the West. He expected their economic backing to overcome the economic crisis. He also largely took assistance, especially from Norway, to resolve the ongoing ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. In July 2002 he was able to meet United States President George W. Bush. It was the first time a Sri Lankan leader met the US president in the White House in 18 years. This visit was primarily focused on building new relationships based on economical links between United States and Sri Lanka. Furthermore, the US government pledged to support his peace efforts with LTTE. He also met the British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In September 2003, Wickremesinghe made his first official visit to Malaysia since taking office as prime minister. Over his two-day visit, he met with Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in Putrajaya and urged Malaysian investors to explore opportunities in tourism, infrastructure, and agriculture. He also reassured them about the positive developments in the peace process.

Opposition (2004–2015)

A few days after LTTE proposed the Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA), President Chandrika Kumaratunga sacked three ministers of the cabinet and took over the ministries using her constitutional powers, ending the uneasy coalition between her and Wickremesinghe while he was out of the country. Addressing the nation she claimed that this decision was taken in the interest of national security. The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna also allied with the PA to defeat Wickremesinghe's government, which they claimed to be a threat to the sovereignty of the country. President Chandrika Kumaratunga dissolved the parliament on 7 February 2004 which effectively ended Wickremesinghe's government.

President Kumaratunga unexpectedly dissolved the Parliament on 7 February 2004 and called for new parliamentary elections. In the 2004 parliamentary elections held on 2 April Wickremesinghe's UNF lost governmental office. Despite the expectation of a full six-year term, and planned projects cut short by the defeat, the UNP was optimistic that it could regain power in a future election. Within 14 months of UPFA's victory, the radical JVP wing's (composed of over 30 members) parting of ways with the government, left the UPFA's parliamentary composition well short of the required majority. He remained in the post of the Opposition Leader until 2015, when Maithripala Sirisena who was sworn in as the President, appointed him as the Prime Minister.

In December 2004, Wickremesinghe was chosen by the United National Party as its presidential candidate for the presidential elections due in late 2005. The Supreme Court decided in August 2005 that the elections should be held that year despite the president's argument that her term would end in 2006. Mahinda Rajapaksa, then prime minister, was nominated as the presidential candidate of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. In the presidential election held on 17 November 2005, Wickremesinghe was narrowly defeated by Mahinda Rajapaksa, who won 50.29% of the vote to Wickremesinghe's 48.43%. A large number of the minority Tamil population in the Northern and Eastern parts of the country, who were largely expected to vote for Wickremesinghe in the election, were prevented from voting by the LTTE which had enforced a boycott of the polls.

After the defeat in the 2004 parliamentary election, a senior member of UNP and a former minister of Wickremesinghe's prime ministerial government, Rohitha Bogollagama, crossed over to the UPFA government. Soon after the UNP's defeat in the 2005 presidential election, Mahinda Samarasinghe and Keheliya Rambukwella also defected to the government.

Third, fourth and fifth premierships (2015–2019)

The UNP along with several other parties and civil organizations signed an Understanding Agreement and decided to field the then Secretary-General of Sri Lanka Freedom Party, Maithripala Sirisena as the common candidate for the 2015 presidential election. Sirisena pledged to appoint Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister if he won the election.

In the elections held on 8 January 2015, Maithripala Sirisena was elected as the 6th President of Sri Lanka, beating incumbent president Mahinda Rajapaksa in his bid for a third term. Sirisena appointed Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka during his inauguration on 9 January 2015.

Wickremesinghe's UNP-led UNFGG won the 2015 parliamentary elections held on 17 August 2015, thus he was officially inaugurated as the Prime Minister for a fourth time, with 106 seats in the 225-member Parliament (though short of 7 seats to secure the simple majority of the Parliament) defeating the political rivalry UPFA leader and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa in his bid to return as prime minister after his defeat as president. Wickremesinghe also scored the highest preferential votes in the election with 500,556 votes, beating his rival Rajapaksa by a considerable margin whilst setting a new record as the candidate with the highest number of preferential votes in Sri Lankas' elections history.

Wickremesinghe vowed to regain the majority in the Parliament and make it as the United National Party's Government, at the same time he also promised to secure the futures of younger generations and instantly confirmed that the Government will launch 1 million jobs for the youth as well advancement for the education and health sectors will maintain as promised. He also took steps to develop the former war-zones by touring the affected areas and met civil activists to discuss the issues faced by the Jaffna civilians and schools and to expedite investigations of missing persons. He also took steps to uplift Northern Province communities and to improve their standard of living.

Wickremesinghe also restarted the Megapolis plan which he started in when he was PM in 2001–2004. Surbana was consulted to revise the master plan to suit newer needs. The Ministry of Megapolis and Western development was created for project and the project which expects to convert the currently unplanned Western Province into a major megapolis by 2030 with an estimated population of 8.4 million and expects to solve the issues concerning traffic congestion, waste management and slum dwellers in urban areas. Wickremesinghe also showed interest in Surbana creating a similar plan for Trincomalee in the Eastern province and an agreement was later signed with Surbana for the purpose.

Opposition (2019–2022)

Following his defeat, Premadasa left the party to form his own party, Samagi Jana Balawegaya from which he contested the 2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary election. Wickremesinghe led the remaining party members in the parliamentary election which was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 parliamentary elections resulted in a landslide victory of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna led by Mahinda Rajapaksa gaining 59.09% of the votes and securing 145 seats in parliament and the Samagi Jana Balawegaya gained 23.90% of votes and 54 seats. The United National Party suffering the worst defeat in its history received a total of 249,435 votes, which was 2.15% of votes cased. For the first time in its history, it failed to win a single seat in parliament, having only gained one national list seat. Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the national list member of parliament of the UNP on 23 June 2021.

Wickremesinghe actively continued to serve as vice chairman of the International Democrat Union and chairman of the Asia Pacific Democrat Union.

Fifth premiership (2022)

By May 2022, the country was in sovereign default and facing hyperinflation, leading to political and social unrest. With events leading to Mahinda Rajapaksa's resignation on 9 May 2022, due to the 2022 Sri Lankan protests, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appointed Wickremesinghe as prime minister on 12 May 2022. He was assured the support of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna members of parliament, while other parties refused to join his cabinet initially.

Reuters described Wickremesinghe as an "economic liberal who has experience dealing with the International Monetary Fund". Wickremesinghe has stated that he intends to form a national government with the participation of all political parties in the parliament and lead the country through the worst economic crisis in its history with less than one million USD in foreign reserves and unable to import essential fuel, food, and medicines, calling the months to come the most difficult in the country's history.

On 25 May, Wickremesinghe was appointed Minister of Finance, Economic Stability and National Policies.

On 9 July, the Prime Minister's office announced that Wickremesinghe was ready to resign to make way for an all-party government as protesters stormed and burned his residence that day. Later in the evening, protesters broke into the 115 Fifth Lane, Wickremesinghe's private residence in Colombo, and set it on fire.

Presidency (2022–2024)

On 13 July, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country to the Maldives, with Wickremesinghe taking charge of the presidency in an acting capacity due to his premiership and imposing a state of emergency in Sri Lanka. Following Rajapaksa's official resignation, Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the acting president of Sri Lanka before Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya on 15 July. Wickremesinghe, who had formerly been a National List MP with his party represented by only one seat in the Parliament, became the President, Prime Minister, Minister of Defense, Minister of Technology, and Minister of Finance all at the same time. Upon becoming the acting president, Wickremesinghe prohibited the usage of "His Excellency" as an honorific prefix for the President and officially abolished the usage of a presidential flag.

On 20 July, he was elected as the 9th President of Sri Lanka by the Parliament of Sri Lanka in a secret ballot to serve the remainder of Rajapaksa's term, which was supposed to end in November 2024. He defeated his main rival, Dullas Alahapperuma, with 134 votes to 82. On 21 July, he was sworn in as the ninth (eighth executive) President of Sri Lanka at the Parliament premises before Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya. A day later, he appointed Dinesh Gunawardena as prime minister.

In September 2022, Wickremesinghe visited the UK as the head of state to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, at the invitation of King Charles III.

Crackdown on anti-government protests

Soon after he was appointed the president, Wickremesinghe vowed to crack down on the 2022 anti-government protests. Wickremesinghe denounced the protestors as "fascists". Security forces raided the protest site in Galle Face Green in the early hours of 22 July, a day after Wickremesinghe was sworn in. 50 protestors were injured and two were hospitalised. BBC journalists were also attacked during the raid. Saliya Pieris, president of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, condemned the raid. British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Sarah Hulton, also expressed concerns.

Handling of economic crisis

Wickremesinghe continued the government policies for economic recovery initiated during the last few days of his predecessor's term. His administration continued power rationing and introduced fuel rationing to control the country's energy crisis, while increasing direct taxes with the aim of increasing government revenue to secure an IMF bailout package by late 2022. These tax increases were largely unpopular and triggered protests organized by the affected sectors. Sri Lanka saw a contraction of 11% of its economy in 2022, with inflation peaking at 54% in December 2022. Wickremesinghe was criticized for hosting celebrations of the 75th anniversary of Sri Lankan independence on 4 February 2023, while the country was amidst an economic crisis.

A significant milestone was achieved by the Wickremesinghe administration in early March 2023, when Wickremesinghe announced to parliament that the IMF has approved the first tranche of US$330 million of its bailout package for Sri Lanka. The IMF bailout was expected to open up additional support of over US$3.75 billion from the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and other lenders; paving the way for Sri Lanka to rework a substantial part of its $84bn worth of public debt. Under the IMF program, his administration initiated a number of economic reforms including enforcing cost reflective pricing for state owned Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), enacting the Central Bank (CB) Act of Sri Lanka to give freedom to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka in its decision making, enacting several other key economic bills such as Economic Transformation Bill, and improving the relationship with Japan which soured under Gotabaya Rajapaksa over the cancellation of the LRT project. Furthermore, his administration was able to complete most of the debt restructuring process including local and international debt.

2023 local government elections

In August 2024, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgement which held that Wickremesinghe as the Minister of Finance, former Chairman and members of the Election Commission and the Attorney General, violated the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Sri Lankan Constitution of Dr Harini Amarasuriya, MP of the National People's Power; Ranjith Madduma Bandara, General Secretary of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya; and the Centre for Policy Alternatives and People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL); by arbitrary and unlawful conduct which led to the 2023 local government elections not taking place at the time that they should have been held. In response, Wickremesinghe acknowledged the Supreme Court's ruling that citizens’ basic rights were violated by the postponement of the local government elections, however stated that he does not regret the decision, stating that he was "dedicated to ensuring the people’s right to live and in maintaining their safety" at the time.

2024 presidential election

Since the start of 2024, there were many speculations whether Wickremesinghe would run for a term of his own right in the 2024 presidential election. By mid-2024, Wickremesinghe himself was hinting that he would run for re-election. As the election was called in August 2024, Wickremesinghe announced that he would run for re-election as an independent candidate. He was endorsed by the United National Party and a breakaway faction of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna. He was also endorsed by the Ceylon Workers' Congress, Eelam People's Democratic Party, and Mahajana Eksath Peramuna. This was Wickremesinghe's third bid for the presidency, and his first time not running as a candidate of the UNP.

Wickremesinghe was eliminated at the end of the first phase of the vote counting, finishing in third place with only 17.27% of the vote. As no candidate secured a majority of the vote in the polls, the elections moved on to a second phase of preferential vote counting where only the two leading candidates remained in the competition. The eliminated candidates' second and third preferences were counted to elect the president between the top two candidates, Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Sajith Premadasa. As the second preferences count concluded, Anura Kumara Dissanayake was declared the 9th Executive President of Sri Lanka.

Wickremesinghe left the Presidential Secretariat on 23 September 2024, allowing for a peaceful transition of power to Dissanayake, who succeeded him as President.

Post-presidency

Following Wickremesinghe's electoral defeat, UNP deputy leader Ruwan Wijewardene stated that Wickremesinghe would not contest in the upcoming parliamentary elections. However, Wickremesinghe actively campaigned for the New Democratic Front, a political coalition of parties that supported him during his presidential campaign.

Controversies

Batalanda Commission

In the lead up to the 1994 general election it was alleged by the People's Alliance government that Wickremesinghe, as the Member of Parliament for the Kelaniya electorate, was the political authority behind an illegal detention centre in the Batalanda housing and industrial complex outside Colombo between 1988 and 1990 which was allegedly run by a police counter-subversive unit as part of the state's operation to put down an armed insurgency by the JVP. The People's Alliance government of President Chandrika Kumaratunga appointed a Commission of Inquiry to investigate activities of Batalanda and on 3 September 1997 Wickremesinghe was summoned to testify before the commission. The Commission's report was released on 12 April 1998. The commission was a fact-finding mission and had no judicial powers; however, it recommended the government to "bring the guilty to book". One of its findings was that "Wickremesinghe and the SSP Nalin Delgoda, are indirectly responsible for the maintenance of places of unlawful detention and torture chambers in houses at the Batalanda Housing Scheme". It further stated that Wickremesinghe held "unauthorised meetings of police officers involved in counter-insurgency operations in the housing complex, and that as such, he had abused his authority". No criminal proceedings took place thereafter.

In 2025, during an interview with Mehdi Hasan on Al Jazeera, Wickremesinghe addressed several allegations related to the Batalanda Commission Report which was shared by Frances Harrison, Director of the International Truth and Justice Project, and reiterated that he had no involvement in the alleged incident. Government spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa stated that a decision on further action would be taken during a Cabinet discussion. The Leader of the House, Bimal Rathnayake tabled the report in Parliament in March, stating that it would be forwarded to the Attorney General for further legal action and called for a parliamentary debate in April. Wickremesinghe responded that he rejects the report claiming that it was politically motivated and that it is unprecedented to debate tabled report 25 years after its publication.

Government bonds controversy

In February 2015 CBSL advertised the sale of Rs. 1 billion in 30 year government bonds at a coupon of 12.5%, though several accounts erroneously cite an indicative rate of 9.5%. The sale was oversubscribed with 36 bids totaling Rs. 20 billion. The majority of bidders, 26, bidded for Rs. 100 million or less at a rate of 9.5%–10.5%. However, a few bidders, including Perpetual Treasuries Limited, wanted interest rates of 11%–12%. On 27 February 2015 the CBSL accepted Rs. 10 billion in bids at rates of 9.5%–12.5%. The issuing of ten times the advertised bonds, and at a higher than expected rate, was alleged to cost the Sri Lankan government an additional Rs. 1.6 billion ($10.6 million), though this was disputed by the Leader of the House of Parliament. A petition was lodged in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka contesting the methodology used to allege such a loss. Perpetual Treasuries was issued, directly and indirectly, with Rs. 5 billion in bonds at 12.5%. Perpetual Treasuries was one of the primary dealers in the sale and is owned by son-in-law of the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Arjuna Mahendran, who was appointed by Wickremesinghe.

On 28 October 2016 the Committee On Public Enterprises, after a lengthy investigation, found Mahendran responsible for the bond issue scam and recommended legal action be taken against him. However, President Maithripala Sirisena announced that he had appointed a Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry to further investigate the case. The commission handed over the report on Central Bank bond issuance to Sirisena on 30 December 2017, and the Presidential Secretariat made available the full report in PDF form from its website for public viewing. During the investigation Wickremesinghe had to appear before the Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry. A group of ministers from the President's party along with opposition MPs failed in a recent attempt to pass a motion of no-confidence against the Prime Minister in Sri Lanka's Parliament. On 15 March 2018 Colombo Fort Magistrate's Court issued an arrest warrant on Arjuna Mahendra on charges of criminal breach of trust for allegedly providing confidential information of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to Perpetual Treasuries Limited.

Emergency regulations and human rights concerns

In July 2022, as Acting President, Wickremesinghe imposed emergency regulations to disperse peaceful protesters during the "Aragalaya" movement. The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka later ruled that these regulations violated fundamental human rights.

Legal challenges and bribery allegations

Wickremesinghe has been summoned multiple times by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC). In May 2025, he raised concerns over submissions made against him in court, alleging they were misleading. Legal proceedings continue to scrutinize his involvement in various matters.

Controversial internet regulation

Under his presidency, the government passed a law granting authorities the power to remove online posts and pursue legal action against internet users. Critics viewed this as an attempt to suppress freedom of expression.

Allegations of misappropriating state funds and arrest

On 22 August 2025, Wickremesinghe was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Sri Lanka Police in connection with allegations of misappropriation of state funds.

Authorities alleged that Wickremesinghe misused approximately Rs16.9 million (about US$50,000) in public funds for a visit to London in September 2023, which coincided with his wife Maithree Wickremesinghe's PhD graduation at the University of Wolverhampton. No official government meetings were held during this period. Investigators stated that the visit was appended to Wickremesinghe's official travel to Cuba for the Group of 77 summit and to the United States for the general debate of the seventy-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. The CID commenced inquiries into the matter in June 2025, recording statements from his former presidential secretary Saman Ekanayake and private secretary Sandra Perera.

Wickremesinghe was taken into custody and produced before the Colombo Fort Magistrate on 22 August. This was the first instance of a former Sri Lankan head of state being arrested. He was subsequently remanded until 26 August. Later that day, due to declining health conditions, he was transferred to the prison hospital and on the following day to the intensive care unit (ICU) of the National Hospital of Sri Lanka in Colombo. He was granted bail by the court on 26 August. The opposition called the arrest politically motivated by the government.

Family and personal life

Wickremesinghe married Maithree Wickremesinghe, a Sri Lankan academic and Professor of English in 1994. Wickremesinghe has made several efforts to keep his private life out of politics. His personal life is rarely publicized or discussed. Maithree Wickremesinghe avoided the political spotlight until Wickremesinghe's re-election as prime minister in 2015.

His paternal grandfather was Cyril Leonard Wickremesinghe, of the Ceylon Civil Service who was the first Sinhalese Land Commissioner and his grandmother was Esme Moonemalle Goonewardene, daughter of Proctor Edward Goonewardene and Ada Moonemalle of Moonemalle Walawwa, Kurunegala whose brother was Theodore Barcroft L. Moonemalle Proctor and Member of the Legislative Council of Ceylon.

His maternal grandfather was D. R. Wijewardena son of Muhandiram Tudugalage Don Philip Wijewardena and Helena Wijewardena née Dep Weerasinghe. His grandmother was Alice Ruby Meedeniya, daughter of J. H. Meedeniya Adigar of Meedeniya Walawwa, Ruwanwella and Corneliya Magdleine Senanayake whose mother was Corneliya Regina Senanayake née Obeyesekere, sister of Lambertus Obeyesekere Maha Mudaliyar of Kataluwa Walawwa.

A number of Wickremesinghe's close relations were active in the government. Of his cousins Ruwan Wijewardene was the State Minister of Defence, Wasantha Senanayake was the State Minister of Foreign Affairs and his aunt Amari Wijewardene was the Sri Lanka High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.

Honours

Robert E. Wilhelm Fellow – Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2014)

Doctor of Laws (honorary) – Deakin University (2017)

Works

Wickremesinghe, Ranil (2005). Dēśapālanaya saha dharmaya (in Sinhala). Sarasavi Prakāśanayō. ISBN 978-955-573-378-6.