Also Read: Mahinda Rajapaksa sworn in as Sri Lankan Prime Minister amid political drama

Sri Lanka's president issued a formal notice for Ranil Wickremesinghe to step down as prime minister and recognise his shock dismissal, in an unfolding constitutional crisis.

Hours after sacking his former ally, President Maithripala Sirisena issued gazettes formalising the dramatic move, and the installation of one-time strongman president Mahinda Rajapakse as the new prime minister.

Also Read: Ranil Wickremasinghe refuses to step down, says Rajapaksa appointment 'unconstitutional'

Reacting sharply to his sacking, Wickremesinghe asserted that the swearing in of Rajapaksa in his place is "illegal and unconstitutional" and he will prove his majority in Parliament. The United National Party (UNP) leader vowed to carry on as prime minister despite being removed by Sirisena.

"I will continue to be the Prime Minister. Mahinda Rajapaksa's appointment is unconstitutional," Wickremesinghe said. </s> Mahinda Rajapaksa has resigned this morning as Sri Lanka's prime minister amid a two-month long power tussle in the island nation, local media reported today.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was ousted by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, is set to return as the prime minister after taking oath on Sunday.

President Sirisena has reportedly agreed to reinstate ousted Prime Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday, Colombo Page reported.

Mr Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) said that it was decided during the discussion that he will take oath as the Prime Minister at 10 am on Sunday.

The President removed Wickremesinghe from the post of Prime Minister on October 26 and appointed former president Rajapaksa as the Premier, plunging the country into an unprecedented crisis.

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

The daily reported that a new Cabinet will be sworn in on Monday. The Cabinet will consist of 30 members and include six Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) parliamentarians, it said.

Mr Rajapaksa's son on Friday announced that the former strongman will resign on Saturday, after two crucial Supreme Court decisions made the embattled leader's 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". </s> Mahinda Rajapaksa signed what was called a 'resignation' letter at his residence in capital Colombo.

Sri Lanka's disputed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has reportedly resigned from his post. (Photo: AP)

Colombo: Sri Lanka's disputed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has reportedly resigned from his post, ending a period of turbulence in the country's parliamentary history where he clung on to power despite suffering no-confidence motions.

Mahinda Rajapaksa signed what was called a 'resignation' letter at his residence in capital Colombo.

Rajapaksa informed the lawmakers of United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) that he has resigned from the post, MP Shehan Semasinghe told reporters.

Rajapaksa was appointed as the prime minister on October 26 by President Sirisena in a controversial move after sacking Ranil Wickremesinghe, which plunged the country into an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

The 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.

The apex court on Thursday unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by Sirisena was "illegal".

Pro-Rajapaksa lawmaker, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, had told reporters that Rajapaksa decided in a meeting on Friday with President Sirisena to resign to allow the President to appoint a new government.

After Rajapaksa's resignation, Ranil Wickremesinghe is expected to take oath as Sri Lanka's Prime Minister on Sunday.

President Maithripala Sirisena has reportedly agreed to reinstate ousted Prime Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday, Colombo Page reported.

Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) said that it was decided during the discussion that he will take oath as the Prime Minister on Sunday. </s> Colombo, Dec 16: Sri Lanka's sacked prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was reinstated on Sunday, a legislator said, ending a 51-day political crisis in the island nation.

Wickremesinghe's comeback is an embarrassment for President Maithripala Sirisena, who replaced him with former president Mahinda Rajapaksa following differences over policymaking and other issues.

However, Rajapaksa failed to win a parliamentary majority and resigned on Saturday as a government shutdown loomed.

Also Read | Mahinda Rajapaksa resigns as Prime minister of Sri Lanka

The President removed Wickremesinghe from the post of Prime Minister on October 26 and appointed former president Rajapaksa as the Premier, plunging the country into an unprecedented crisis.

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

The apex 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. </s> COLOMBO: Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was appointed as Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister by President Maithripala Sirisena in a controversial move, resigned Saturday as two crucial Supreme Court decisions made the embattled former strongman’s efforts to cling to premiership untenable.

 Rajapaksa informed the lawmakers of United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) that he has resigned from the post, MP Shehan Semasinghe told reporters.

 Rajapaksa was appointed as the prime minister on October 26 by President Sirisena in a controversial move after sacking Ranil Wickremesinghe, which plunged the country into an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

The 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.

 The apex court on Thursday unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by Sirisena was “illegal”.

 Pro-Rajapaksa lawmaker, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, had told reporters that Rajapaksa decided in a meeting on Friday with President Sirisena to resign to allow the President to appoint a new government.

Wickremesinghe is expected to take oath as Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister on Sunday.

 President Maithripala Sirisena has reportedly agreed to reinstate ousted Prime Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday. PTI </s> United National Party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka on Sunday, ending a 51-day power tussle in the island nation that had crippled the government. Wickremesinghe, 69, was administered the oath of office by President Maithripala Sirisena, who had sacked him on October 26 in a controversial move which plunged the island nation into an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

The UNP leader had refused to step down asserting that his sacking was illegal. His re-appointment comes a day after former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was installed as Prime Minister by President Sirisena, resigned Saturday, after two crucial Supreme Court decisions made his efforts to cling to premiership untenable.

According to media reports, a new Cabinet will be sworn in on Monday. The Cabinet will consist of 30 members and include six Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) parliamentarians. Earlier, Wickremesinghe’s party said it was ready to work with President Sirisena, who was “misled by some groups” against the unity government.

UNP deputy leader Sajith Premadasa said that he was not surprised that the President had agreed to appoint Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister again despite taking a firm position earlier that he will not appoint the UNP leader. “This showed the true character of the President,” he was quoted as saying by the Colombo Gazette. Premadasa said that the President was “misled by some groups who were against the unity Government” and this resulted in the President removing Wickremesinghe. “But now truth has prevailed,” he said.

“The party is prepared to work with Sirisena again in the government.” Premadasa said, “The lessons from the incident must be used to strengthen the foundation of democracy and promote justice and fairness.” Rajapaksa, 73, had sought to secure a majority in the 225-member Parliament but failed. Sirisena then dissolved Parliament and called snap elections on January 5. However, the Supreme Court overturned his decision and halted the preparations for snap polls.

The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by Sirisena was “illegal”. The apex court on Friday also refused to stay a court order restraining Rajapaksa from holding the office of Prime Minister until it fully heard the case next month. Rajapaksa signed his resignation letter during a multi-religious service at his home that was attended by several lawmakers of United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA), Buddhist and other religious leaders.

After signing the resignation letter, Rajapaksa said that following the February 10 local government election, the aim of his party is to have a general election. However, he said that he has no intention of remaining as Prime Minister without a general election being held, and in order to not hamper the President in any way, he resigned from the position of Prime Minister and made way for the President to form a new Government.

Rajapaksa said that since a general election can no longer be held, the UPFA cannot implement any of the measures they had planned to take “to prevent the country from becoming another Greece.” Most of the countries had not recognised Rajapaksa’s government. The global credit rating agencies — the Fitch, the Standard & Poor’s and the Moody’s — had also downgraded Sri Lanka’s rating owing to the current political crisis. </s> President Maithripala Sirisena Friday sacked his Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and appointed former president Mahinda Rajapakse as the new premier, the president's office said.

A private television network loyal to Rajapakse televised him being sworn in as the new prime minister, replacing Wickremesinghe.

There was no immediate word from Wickremesinghe, who helped Sirisena win the January 2015 elections against Rajapakse.

The surprise move comes after disagreements between Sirisena and Wickremesinghe over economic policy and day-to-day administration of the government.

The pair were reported to have clashed in cabinet last week over government plans to lease a port terminal to neighbouring India.

Wickremesinghe's government came to power promising economic reforms and accountability for atrocities committed in Sri Lanka's bloody civil war during Rajapakse's presidency. </s> Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned on Saturday in an attempt to put an end to the weeks of political instability in the country, PTI reported. He signed the resignation letter at his home in Wijerama in Colombo. Ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is expected to take oath on Sunday, according to The New Indian Express.

Rajapaksa’s son Namal Rajapaksa had said on Friday that his father will step down the next day in interest of the “stability of the nation”. Namal Rajapaksa, a member of Parliament, had said the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and others will now work with President Maithripala Sirisena’s United People’s Freedom Alliance to form a broader coalition government.

The island country has been in a state of political turmoil since Sirisena ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and replaced him with Mahinda Rajapaksa, a former president, on October 26. He suspended Parliament to prevent a vote, then lifted the suspension, but dissolved it again in November and called for snap elections on January 5. Rajapaksa’s government has lost two trust motions in Parliament. On Thursday, the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka ruled that Sirisena’s decision to dissolve Parliament was illegal and unconstitutional. </s> A Sri Lankan man walks past a banner carrying portraits of newly appointed prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, left, his brother Gotabhaya and president Maithripla Sirisena, second left, outside the supreme courts complex in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018. Sri Lanka is in the midst of a political crisis set off by the president's decisions to remove the South Asian island nation's prime minister, dissolve Parliament and call snap elections. The banner reads" We welcome the leader who brought life to people" in Sinhalese. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena) (Eranga Jayawardena)
Ranil Wickremesinghe is sworn in as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka.