Colombo: Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, leader of Sri Lanka's Marxist People's Liberation Front (JVP), is vying for the presidency with hopes for a peaceful revolution. Once associated with violent uprisings, Dissanayaka now focuses on ballots, not bullets, after two failed JVP insurrections that claimed over 80,000 lives.

The 55-year-old has gained momentum for the September 21 elections, forming a coalition with professionals frustrated by long-standing political elites. He attributes the country’s 2022 economic collapse to corruption and inefficiency by successive governments.

Sri Lanka's financial crisis, the worst since its 1948 independence, saw massive protests that ousted then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Dissanayaka, a former agriculture minister, supported the protestors but distanced himself from direct involvement.

In his manifesto, Dissanayaka pledges a government free from control by corrupt elites and promises not to return to violence. His JVP's first uprising in 1971 led to 20,000 deaths, while a second insurrection in 1987 resulted in about 60,000 casualties.

Despite the party’s violent past, Dissanayaka has signaled an ideological shift, supporting an open economy and improving state enterprises without privatization. With growing support, he seeks to reshape Sri Lanka's governance through peaceful political means.