Colombo, Oct 27: In a dramatic development, former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was on Friday sworn in as the Prime Minister, capping months of friction in the ruling coalition.
The swearing in ceremony took place at the Presidential Secretariat by President Maithripala Sirisena.
The videos made available to the media through mobile show Mr Rajapaksa taking oath as the
Prime Minister at an event attended by MPs from the Joint Opposition and Ministers and MPs of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).
The SLFP MPs who recently left the government were also present for the ceremony, media said.
The surprised development came as the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) decided to withdraw from the government headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe.
UPFA General Secretary Mahinda Amaraweera was also present at the swearing in
ceremony of the new Prime Minister.
President Maithripala Sirisena’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the main constituent party of the UPFA, and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s United National Party (UNP) had formed a unity government in August 2015 following the general election.
According to media reports, the coalition was faced with frictions in recent months.
Both coalition partners suffered heavy losses in local elections in February, and President Sirisena loyalists backed a no-confidence motion in April against the Prime Minister.
But Wickremesinghe had survived after a majority of legislators voted to support his coalition government.
