Assertion of Religion in Sri Lankan Politics: A Critical Analysis

About the Monograph

The monograph presents an in-depth analysis of the role of religion in Sri Lankan politics and its impact on the country in the social, political, security, and foreign policy domains. It focuses on the politics of the Sinhala-Buddhist and Muslim communities, as they have explicitly utilised their religions for political purposes in the post-independence period. To comprehend the role of religion in contemporary Sri Lankan politics, the monograph traces the evolution of the country’s social and political structures, as well as the relationship between the state and religion, under various political systems and administrations from the ancient period till date. The historical and current political developments are analysed by applying the integrative theory in the context of religion and politics in Sri Lanka.

About the Author

Dr. Gulbin Sultana is an Associate Fellow with the South Asia Centre in the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), New Delhi. Her areas of research in the institute include Sri Lanka and the Maldives. She has written extensively on the politico-economic and foreign policy developments of these two countries. Additionally, Dr. Sultana takes interest in the study of small island states, particularly in the Indian Ocean Region and also issues pertaining to maritime security. Dr. Sultana is the coeditor of the book titled Think20@G20: Towards A Resilient South Asia, 2024.
She has done her MPhil on “India’s Naval Support to Sri Lanka and the Maldives” from the South Asian Studies Division of School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She was awarded a PhD degree too by the same university. Her doctoral thesis was on “Sri Lanka’s Maritime Security: A Study of Military and Non-military Responses.” Before joining MP-IDSA, she worked with the National Maritime Foundation and the United Service Institution of India in New Delhi.