Mahinda Rajapaksa Resigned as Sri Lanka PM, Ranil Wickremesinghe to Take Oath

Mahinda Rajapaksa has resigned as Sri Lanka's prime minister this morning and Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was expelled earlier by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, is now all set to return as the prime minister.

The oath by Ranil Wickremesinghe will be taken on Sunday at 10.00 AM. President Sirisena has agreed for the return of Prime Minister Wickremesinghe after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday.

The President removed Wickremesinghe from the post of Prime Minister on October 26 and appointed former president Rajapaksa as the Premier.

Mr Wickremesinghe refused to accept the sacking and challenged it in a court and in the Parliament.

The new Cabinet will get started on Monday. The Cabinet will consist of 30 members and include six Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) parliamentarians.

Mr Rajapaksa's son on Friday announced that the former strongman will resign on Saturday, after two crucial Supreme Court decisions made the efforts to cling to premiership untenable.

Sri Lanka's Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay a court order restraining Rajapaksa, 73, from holding the office of Prime Minister until it fully heard the case next month.

"To ensure stability of the nation, Former President @PresRajapaksa has decided to resign from the Premiership tomorrow after an address to the nation," Rajapaksa's son Namal tweeted.

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) with former president, SLFP and others will "now work to form a broader political coalition with President Sirisena", Namal, a lawmaker, added.

The top court's Friday ruling came a day after it unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by President Sirisena was illegal.