COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka's disputed prime minister announced Saturday that he would step aside, paving the way for his sacked predecessor to regain the position and apparently ending a political impasse that has paralyzed the government for nearly two months. 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. Mr Rajapaksa said in a statement: “Since I have no intention of remaining as prime minister without a general election being held, and in order to not hamper the president in any way, I will resign from the position of prime minister and make way for the president to form a new government.”

He was to deliver an address to the nation later on Saturday in which he was expected to explain his resignation. 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. Rajapaksa asked the Supreme Court to lift the suspension, but it refused and extended the suspension until mid-January, forcing Rajapaksa to resign on Saturday. The top court put off the next hearing until mid-January, when it planned to rule on whether they should hold office after losing two no-confidence votes in Parliament. All of them can sleep well now.”

Wickremesinghe’s government is likely to quickly pass a budget that will allow government services to resume and reassure the country’s lenders including the International Monetary Fund that it can finance its heavy external debts. That, in turn, could be exploited by Rajapaksa, whose Buddhist nationalist party traditionally takes a hard line on Tamil demands for greater autonomy and accountability for crimes committed during the country’s three-decade long civil war. “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. "We can be proud of the way our Parliament and Supreme Court did their duties according to the law," Wickremesinghe said Sunday, adding that the Supreme Court had strengthened the freedom of the citizens by interpreting the law accurately. Mr Sirisena has repeatedly rejected appeals to reappoint Mr Wickremesinghe as prime minister, but has invited Mr Wickremesinghe, who has the support of 117 politicians in Parliament, to form a government.
Ranil Wickremesinghe is sworn in as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka.