COLOMBO, Dec 16 : 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, media reports said.

Wickremesinghe was administered the oath of office by President Maithripala Sirisena at a simple ceremony held at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo, the Press Trust of India reported.

His appointment comes hours after former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was appointed Prime Minister by President Maithripala Sirisena, resigned on Saturday, paving way for the return of Wickremesinghe as premier.

Sri Lanka’s President Sirisena had sacked Wickremesinghe on October 26, in a controversial move which plunged the island nation into an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

Sirisena agreed to reinstate Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday.

 
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