Sri Lanka court bars Rajapaksa from acting as Prime Minister

A Sri Lankan court on Monday, December 3, barred Mahinda Rajapaksa from acting as Prime Minister, in a major set back to President Maithripala Sirisena who had installed his former rival in place of Ranil Wickremesinghe in a controversial decision.

The Appeal Court issued notice and an interim order against Rajapaksa and his Government, preventing them from acting as Prime Minister, Cabinet and Deputy Ministers, Colombo Gazette reported.

The order was issued in a Quo Warranto case filed by 122 MPs against Rajapaksa and his Government.

Sri Lanka has been embroiled in a political crisis since October 26 when President Maithripala Sirisena sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and replaced him with Rajapaksa.

Both Wickremesinghe and Rajapaksa claim to be the prime ministers. Wickremesinghe says his dismissal is invalid because he still holds a majority in the 225-member Parliament.

The UNF has moved three no trust motions against Rajapaksa, who has refused to step down.

The court also served notice on respondents and directed them to show by what authority they hold office. The case will be taken up on December 12 and 13.

Meanwhile, Rajapaksa called for a snap parliamentary election and said it was the only way the country could solve the ongoing political instability. The Supreme Court overturned Sirisena's decision to dissolve Parliament and halted the preparations for snap polls.

In a special statement released by his office, Rajapaksa invited all those who respected democracy to give a careful thought to holding a parliamentary election, as this would be the only way to end the present crisis, Xinhua news agency reported.

Rajapaksa's party, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, organized a mass activity in Colombo on Monday afternoon with hundreds of people calling for a snap parliamentary poll.