Wickremesinghe sworn in as Sri Lankan PM

Colombo, Dec 16 (IANS) Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, sacked from the post in October, was sworn in again on Sunday by President Maithripala Sirisena, a move that ended a nearly two-month political crisis which erupted after his surprising dismissal. Wickremesinghe, who is also the leader of the ruling United National Party (UNP), took his oath of office at the Presidential Secretariat here, reports Colombo Page. The Cabinet of Ministers will be sworn in on Monday. Sunday's move comes after Mahinda Rajapakse resigned on Saturday as Prime Minister, seven weeks after he was appointed by Sirisena following Wickremesinghe's dismissal on October 26. On Wednesday, Parliament passed a vote of confidence in Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister. The Supreme Court ruled the next day that Sirisena had acted illegally in November by dissolving Parliament and calling snap polls nearly two years ahead of the next elections.
--IANS ksk/mr