Wickremesinghe hopes Sirisena would honour SC's verdict

Sri Lanka's ousted prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Thursday expressed hope that President Maithripala Sirisena would honour the verdict of the Supreme Court, which ruled that the dissolution of Parliament was "illegal".

"We trust that the president will promptly respect the judgment," he told his supporters after a 7-member apex court bench unanimously ruled that the President cannot dissolve Parliament till it completes its 4 1/2 year term.

"The legislature, judiciary, and the executive are equally important pillars of a democracy and the checks and balances that they provide are crucial to ensuring the sovereignty of its citizens," he tweeted.

Wickremesinghe was sacked as prime minister on October 26 by President Sirisena, who installed Mahinda Rajapaksa in his place. Later, Sirisena also dissolved the 225-member Parliament and called for a snap election on January 5.

Sirisena sacked the Parliament when it appeared that Rajapaksa would not be able to muster the support of 113 MPs to gain a simple majority. Wickremesinghe on the other hand commands a majority in the House.

As many as 13 petitions were filed in the Supreme Court against Sirisena's November 9 order sacking the Parliament, almost 20 months before its term was to end.

The President has said that due to sharp personal differences with Wickremesinghe, he would not reappoint him as the Prime Minister.

Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, a legislator of Sirisena's party, said the President was still undecided about reappointing Wickremesinghe.

The court's ruling was a major setback to both Sirisena and Rajapaksa.

The court has effectively said that Sirisena had violated the Constitution, a position held firmly by Wickremesinghe.