She is the third woman to hold the office of prime minister of Sri Lanka, after Sirimavo Bandaranaike and her daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga.
[citation needed] The family moved to Colombo after her father's estate was taken over by the government under the Land Reform Act of 1972, where she attended Bishop's College, with a year in the United States as an exchange student.
[8] Amarasuriya joined the National Intellectuals Organization in 2019 and campaigned for the NPP Candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake during the 2019 Sri Lankan presidential election.
[9][10][11] Confusion and concerns were raised about whether she could continue her service as an academic senior lecturer at the Open University after being nominated as a national list candidate.
[citation needed] She focused on reconciliation and social inclusion to help bridge ethnic, religious and political divides in Sri Lanka, as well as promoting national unity and stability.
Additionally, she advocated for gender equality and LGBTQ+ rights, was involved in the Parliamentary Caucus for Animal Welfare, and served on the Board of Directors for the non-governmental organization Nest.
Amarasuriya was given the portfolios of Justice, Public Administration, Provincial Councils, Local Government and Labour, Education, Science and Technology, Trade, Commercial, Food Security, Co-operative Development, Industries and Entrepreneur Development, Women, Child and Youth Affairs and Sports and Health in the caretaker government until a new parliament is elected in the parliamentary election on 14 November 2024.