Sri Lanka Speaker recognises Ranil Wickremesinghe as PM

Amid the political uproar in the nation, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya on Sunday recognised Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister, three days after he was sacked by President Maithripala Sirisena.

Jayasuriya, in a letter addressed to Sirisena, requested the President to safeguard the rights and privileges of Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister until any other person emerges from within Parliament.

"I have received a request to protect the rights and privileges of Hon. Ranil Wickremesinghe until any other person emerges from within Parliament as having secured the confidence of Parliament," the letter, obtained by Colombo Page, read.

Addressing the proroguing of Parliament till November 16, the Speaker wrote: "In this context continuing the prorogation of Parliament until 16th November will have serious and undesirable consequences for our country, and I kindly request you to reconsider same."

Political turmoil erupted in Sri Lanka after Sirisena sacked Wickremesinghe on Friday night and replaced him with his predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa following the collapse of the governing coalition between Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and United National Party (UNP).

Terming his ouster "unconstitutional", the ousted prime minister had asserted that he still holds the Prime Minister's office and is ready to prove that he retains the majority.

Wickremesinghe had requested the Speaker to call an emergency Parliament session on Monday so that he could prove his majority in the house, following which Sirisena also suspended Parliament till November 16 amid the constitutional crisis in the nation.

In April, Wickremesinghe also survived a no-confidence motion in the country's Parliament that was brought by the supporters of Rajapaksa.

Rajapaksha, who served as Lanka's President for a period of 10 years from 2005 to 2015, is a fierce political opponent of the current President.

Sirisena had defeated Rajapaksha in the Presidential election of 2015.