Sri Lanka's top court expected to deliver verdict on Sirisena dissolving Parliament

Sri Lanka's top court is expected to deliver on Thursday its crucial verdict on whether President Maithripala Sirisena broke the law by dissolving Parliament that plunged the country into unprecedented political turmoil. 

Sri Lanka's parliament on Wednesday passed a vote of confidence in its ousted prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, as it sought his reinstatement by the president to defuse a political crisis and avoid a government shutdown.

The political crisis in the island nation started in late October when Sirisena sacked Wickremesinghe from the post of Prime Minister and replaced him with former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Parliament has twice in the past few weeks voted to sack Rajapaksa but he has refused to resign.

Last week, Sirisena claimed that Rajapaksa had tried to bribe politicians in order to show a majority in the country's Parliament.