Sri lankan political crisis: Mahinda Rajapaksa to step down as PM tomorrow

The controversial action on 26 October led to a political crisis in the country, with both Wickremesinghe and Rajapaksa claiming to be the legitimate prime minister.

Colombo, Dec 14: Mahinda Rajapaksa's son Namal Rajapaksa on Friday tweeted that his father would resign as the prime minister of Sri Lanka.

Maithripala Sirisena in October abruptly sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and replaced him with former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa in a controversial move termed by many as unconstitutional. The controversial action on 26 October led to a political crisis in the country, with both Wickremesinghe and Rajapaksa claiming to be the legitimate prime minister.

"To ensure stability of the nation, Former President @PresRajapaksa has decided to resign from the Premiership tomorrow after an address to the nation. The SLPP with Frm President, SLFP & others will now work to form a broader political coalition with President Sirisena," Namal Rajapaksha tweeted.

To ensure stability of the nation, Former President @PresRajapaksa has decided to resign from the Premiership tomorrow after an address to the nation. The SLPP with Frm President, SLFP & others will now work to form a broader political coalition with President Sirisena.

— Namal Rajapaksa (@RajapaksaNamal) December 14, 2018

Sirisena, after sacking Wickremesinghe, dissolved Parliament and called for a snap election on January 5. The Sri Lankan Supreme Court on Thursday came down heavily on Sirisena's decision to dissolve Parliament and called the move 'illegal', said reports.

The ruling came a day after Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe proved his majority in Parliament.

Rajapaksa failed to prove his majority in Parliament, however, he had refused to step down. Wickeremesinghe has the backing of 106 parliamentarians, while the Rajapaksa-Sirisena combine has the support of 95.