Mahinda Rajapaksa to resign as Sri Lanka Prime Minister on Saturday, says son Namal

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa's son Namal on Friday said that his father will step down as Prime Minister of the island nation in order to ensure stablity. 

Namal announced this on his official Twitter handle a day after Sri Lanka's Supreme Court refused to stay a court order restraining Mahinda Rajapaksa from holding the office of Prime Minister. 

''To ensure stability of the nation, Former President @PresRajapaksa has decided to resign from the Premiership tomorrow after an address to the nation. The SLPP with Frm President, SLFP & others will now work to form a broader political coalition with President Sirisena,'' tweeted Lankan parliamentarian and Rajapaksa's son Namal.

The apex court's latest ruling came a day after it unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by President Maithripala Sirisena was "illegal", in a body blow to the embattled leader, whose controversial decisions plunged the island nation into an unprecedented political turmoil.

Sri Lanka is going through a major political crisis since October 26 when President Maithripala Sirisena, in a controversial move, removed Wickremesinghe and installed ex-strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa in his place.

Parliamentarians of Wickremesinghe's UNP, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and Tamil National Alliance on November 23 filed the petition in the Court of Appeal challenging Rajapaksa on continuing to hold the office of Prime Minister after a no-confidence motion was passed in Parliament against him.

Sirisena, after sacking Wickremesinghe on October 26, dissolved Parliament and called for a snap election on January 5.
However, the Supreme Court overturned his decision and halted the preparations for snap polls.

Wickremesinghe and Rajapaksa both claim to be the prime ministers with the former claiming that his dismissal is invalid because he still holds a majority in the 225-member Parliament.

Prior to the crisis, Wickramasinghe's UNP had the backing of 106 parliamentarians while Rajapaksa and Sirisena combine had 95 seats.

(With inputs from PTI)