Gotabaya Rajapaksa

Lieutenant Colonel **Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa**, RWP, RSP, psc, GR (; ; born 20 June 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician, technocrat and military officer. He is the 8th President of Sri Lanka since 18 November 2019. He was Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development from 2005 to 2015.

He led the Sri Lankan Armed Forces to the military defeat of the Tamil tigers, ending the Sri Lankan Civil War.

In mid 2022, massive protests broke out in the country against Rajapaksa and his government because of his bad handling of the country's economy. On 9 July 2022, Rajapaksa left his official residence in Colombo before protesters broke into the residence. Protesters were seen taking over the mansion even swimming in the president's pool. Later that evening, it was announced he would resign on 13 July 2022.

On the day he promised he would resign, he left the country by military plane to the Maldives without resigning as president. On 14 July, he left the Maldives after people there protested his arrival and left to Singapore. On 14 July, Rajapaksa resigned from presidency.

## Infobox (officeholder)

- **honorific-prefix**: Excellency, His Excellency Lieutenant Colonel
- **name**: Gotabaya Rajapaksa
- **honorific-suffix**: Rana Wickrama Padakkama, RWP, Rana Sura Padakkama, RSP
- **native name**:

- **image**: Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa.jpg
- **imagesize**: 240px
- **order1**: 8th
- **office1**: President of Sri Lanka
- **term start1**: 18 November 2019
- **term end1**: 14 July 2022
- **primeminister1**: Ranil Wickremesinghe
Mahinda Rajapaksa
- **predecessor1**: Maithripala Sirisena
- **successor1**: Ranil Wickremesinghe
- **office2**: Minister of Defence (Sri Lanka), Minister of Defence
- **president2**: Himself
- **term start2**: 18 November 2019
- **term end2**: 14 July 2022
- **primeminister2**: Ranil Wickremesinghe
- **predecessor2**: Maithripala Sirisena
- **successor2**: Ranil Wickremesinghe
- **office3**: Minister of Technology (Sri Lanka), Minister of Technology
- **term start3**: 26 November 2020
- **term end3**: 14 July 2022
- **primeminister3**: Mahinda Rajapaksa
Ranil Wickremesinghe
- **president3**: _Himself_
- **predecessor3**: Susil Premajayantha
- **successor3**: Ranil Wickremesinghe
- **office4**: Ministry of Defence (Sri Lanka)#Permanent Secretaries, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development
- **term start4**: 25 November 2005
- **term end4**: 8 January 2015
- **president4**: Mahinda Rajapaksa
- **minister4**: Mahinda Rajapaksa
- **predecessor4**: Asoka Jayawardena
- **successor4**: B. M. U. D. Basnayake
- **birth name**: Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa
- **birth place**: Palatuwa, Matara District, Dominion of Ceylon
- **spouse**: Ayoma Rajapaksa
- **relations**: Mahinda Rajapaksa (brother)
Basil Rajapaksa (brother)
Chamal Rajapaksa (brother)
- **nickname**: Gota
- **children**: Manoj
- **parents**: D. A. Rajapaksa (father)
 Dandina Rajapaksa  (mother)
- **alma mater**: Ananda College
- **allegiance**: Sri Lanka
- **branch**: Sri Lankan Army
- **serviceyears**: 1971–1992
- **rank**: Lieutenant colonel
- **unit**: Gajaba Regiment
- **commands**: Gajaba Regiment#Units, 1st Gajaba Regiment
General Sir John Kotelawala Defence Academy
- **battles**: Sri Lankan Civil War
1987–1989 JVP insurrection
- **mawards**:  Rana Wickrama Padakkama

Rana Sura Padakkama
- **website**: https://gota.lk/