 He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) (Military Division) in the 1956 New Year Honours and for his long service as a volunteer officer he received the Efficiency Decoration.As a founding member of the United National Party, Dharmapala contested the 1947 general election from the Hakmana electorate but lost to P. Kumarasiri of the Communist Party of Ceylon.On his second attempt he was successful as Dharmapala entered parliament in 1952, having been elected from the Hakmana electorate in the 1952 general election and was appointed as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industries, Housing and Social Services.