sentences:  Bandaranaike when he crossed the floor of the House to the Opposition benches on 12 July 1951.The Rajapaksas supported Bandaranaike at the general elections of 1952, winning the Beliatta electorate for the SLFP.Later on, in the historic general elections of 1956, Rajapaksa was elected member of parliament for Beliatta and appointed as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Lands and Land Development.