Cyril Cyrus "Jungle" Dissanayake, MVO was a Sri Lankan senior police officer.
He was serving as Deputy Inspector-General of Police of Range I, when he was implicated as one of the leaders of the attempted military coup of 1962.
In April 1945, he was appointed Acting Superintendent of Police of the Eastern and North-Central Provinces and was confirmed in June 1946.
[2] In 1959, when Inspector General of Police Osmund de Silva was sent on compulsorily retirement by Prime Minister S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike for refusing to carryout orders which Osmund de Silva considered unlawful, DIG Dissanayake was next in line for the post of Inspector General of Police based on the seniority list.
[3] As member of the Christian elite, who ever being deprived of the influence they once had due to the Sinhalaisation process started by Prime Minister S.W.R.D.
The plan was to use troops from the Ceylon Artillery and several other volunteer units along with scout cars of the Ceylon Armoured Corps and policemen to detain the Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike at Temple Trees (the official residence of the prime minister) and round up cabinet ministers, the Permanent Secretary for Defence and External affairs, the Inspector General of Police, DIG (Director of CID), SP (CID) and the acting Navy Commander.
Finally, F. C. de Saram did make a confession, taking all blame for the coup that would become the prosecution's main article of evidence.
The conviction was overruled on appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which ruled that the new Act had denied fair trial, since the new laws only effect the accused.