Chanaka Dinushan was born inGalle to a Sinhala- Buddhist family, the son of D. V. Upul, a Provincial Council Minister (Southern Province)[2] and has two brothers and a sister. He spent his childhood in Kudawella, a fishing village inTangalle. He was educated at Vijitha Central College,Dikwella before attending the American College of Higher Education in Galle.[3] He then entered theSoutheast Missouri State University atCape Girardeau, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science in Construction Management and Design.[3] Chanaka is currently reading for his master's degree in financial economics in theUniversity of Colombo.
After graduating fromSoutheast Missouri State University, he returned to Sri Lanka and started working in the construction field as the project manager in the Aarking Engineering construction company where he later became a director. He was also an active member in the Young Contractors Forum.
He was also an active volunteer, through which he became the chairman of the Pathuma Foundation.
He was appointed by the 2020 Rajapaksa government as State Minister of Aviation and Export Zones Development[4]
Chanaka contested the2015 parliamentary elections, where aged 28, he was one of the youngest candidates.[2] He ran as the United People's Freedom Alliance candidate, in theHambantota electorate receiving 51,939 votes and secured the fourth place among his party candidates.[5] In doing so he became the second youngestmember of Parliament.
He currently serves as a member in the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Youth Affairs, Project Management and Southern Development.[1] In October 2017 he was arrested together with two other parliamentarians,Namal Rajapaksa andPrasanna Ranaweera and three provincial council members, in relation to a protest, against the proposed handover of theMagampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port andMattala Rajapaksa International Airport to foreign companies.[6]
