2020 parliamentary election which was held on 5 August 2020 and urged the public not to vote for his preferential number and revealed that it would be impossible to remove his name from the nomination list. On 9 June 2020, he also announced that he would step back and quit parliamentary politics. Controversies In 2019, while being the finance minister he was accused of spreading hate speech about Buddhism due to his opposition to Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism and monks urged immediate action against him for his comments about Buddhism. He also criticised Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith in 2018 for Ranjith's comments on human rights and, in 2019, blamed Ranjith for visiting a Buddhist monk who was fasting. He was accused of using Sri Lanka Transport Board buses to transport and locate voters for the 2019 Presidential election during his tenure as finance minister. Personal life He was openly homosexual. In November 2018, after homophobic comments made by President Maithripala Sirisena, he wrote on Twitter that “I would rather be a butterfly than a leech Mr. President!!!” In May 2021, he featured in a YouTube video, "Light Upali", where he played the role of a warrior defending social media platform TikTok. Death He died on 24 August 2021 at the age of 65 due to COVID-19. Prior to his death, he was admitted into the intensive care unit of the Lanka Hospital in Colombo after being tested positive for COVID-19 in August 2021. He was diagnosed with COVID-19 despite being fully vaccinated with both doses. Before his death was officially confirmed on 24 August 2021, rumours of his death started circulating on social media from 18 August. He was the second high-profile Sri Lankan politician to succumb to COVID-19 after W. J. M. Lokubandara. Further reading See also List of foreign ministers in 2017 List of political families in Sri Lanka List of the first LGBT holders of political offices References External links Mangala Samaraweera's Official Website Mangala for democratic leadership in SLFP UNESCO Executive Board Parliament profile Interview with Mangala Samaraveera. The Hindu. |- 1956 births 2021 deaths Finance ministers of Sri Lanka Foreign ministers of Sri Lanka Sri Lankan Theravada Buddhists Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Members of the 9th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 11th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 12th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of