| Election Name: | 2001 Sri Lankan parliamentary election |
| Country: | Sri Lanka |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Previous Election: | 2000 Sri Lankan parliamentary election |
| Previous Year: | 2000 |
| Outgoing Members: | 11th Parliament of Sri Lanka |
| Next Election: | 2004 Sri Lankan parliamentary election |
| Next Year: | 2004 |
| Elected Members: | 12th Parliament of Sri Lanka |
| Seats For Election: | All 225 seats in the Parliament of Sri Lanka 113 seats were needed for a majority |
| Election Date: | 5 December 2001 |
| Turnout: | 76.03% |
| Image1: | Defense.gov News Photo 031103-D-2987S-069 (cropped).jpg |
| Leader1: | Ranil Wickremesinghe |
| Leader Since1: | 1994 |
| Party1: | UNF |
| Leaders Seat1: | Colombo District |
| Last Election1: | 40.22%, 89 seats |
| Seats1: | 109 |
| Seat Change1: | 20 |
| Popular Vote1: | 4,086,026 |
| Percentage1: | 45.62% |
| Swing1: | 5.40% |
| Leader2: | Chandrika Kumaratunga |
| Leader Since2: | 1994 |
| Party2: | PA |
| Leaders Seat2: | n/a |
| Last Election2: | 45.11%, 107 seats |
| Seats2: | 77 |
| Seat Change2: | 30 |
| Popular Vote2: | 3,330,815 |
| Percentage2: | 37.19% |
| Swing2: | 7.92% |
| Image4: | 3x4.svg |
| Leader4: | Somawansa Amarasinghe |
| Leader Since4: | 1990 |
| Party4: | Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna |
| Leaders Seat4: | n/a |
| Last Election4: | 6.00%, 10 seats |
| Seats4: | 16 |
| Seat Change4: | 6 |
| Popular Vote4: | 815,353 |
| Percentage4: | 9.10% |
| Swing4: | 3.10% |
| Image5: | R. Sampanthan.jpg |
| Leader5: | Rajavarothiam Sampanthan |
| Leader Since5: | 2001 |
| Party5: | Tamil National Alliance |
| Leaders Seat5: | Trincomalee District |
| Last Election5: | Did not exist |
| Seats5: | 15 |
| Seat Change5: | New party |
| Popular Vote5: | 348,164 |
| Percentage5: | 3.89% |
| Swing5: | New party |
| Map Size: | 250px |
| Prime Minister | |
| Posttitle: | Prime Minister-designate |
| Before Election: | Ratnasiri Wickremanayake |
| After Election: | Ranil Wickremesinghe |
| Before Party: | People's Alliance (Sri Lanka) |
| After Party: | United National Front (Sri Lanka) |
Parliamentary elections were held in Sri Lanka on 5 December 2001, just a little over a year after the previous elections in October 2000.
The People's Alliance (PA) government faced a blow when most of the SLMC MPs left the coalition. President Chandrika Kumaratunga tried to recruit the JVP to replace it, but this angered several PA MPs, thirteen of which defected to the opposition. A no-confidence motion was prepared; to forestall this, Kumaratunga called the election.
More than 1,300 incidents of election violence were reported during the campaign. http://www.economist.com/displayStory.cfm?story_id=886251. Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake was nearly killed by a suicide bomber. Overall, 60 people were killed in election-related violence, including 14 on polling day. http://www.economist.com/displayStory.cfm?story_id=898423
The ruling People's Alliance lost the election, which saw the United National Front win the legislative power. UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe became the new prime minister.
Having the President and Prime Minister belong to two different parties proved to be unstable, and Parliament was dissolved again in 2004, leading to yet another general election.
See main article: Results of the 2001 Sri Lankan general election by province.
See main article: Results of the 2001 Sri Lankan general election by electoral district.
See main article: 12th Sri Lankan Parliament.