Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled to Singapore, resigns
Sri Lanka crisis: Rajapaksa, who had promised to resign on Wednesday instead appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as Acting President hours after he fled to the Maldives, escalating political crisis and triggering a fresh wave of protests.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa emailed his resignation to the speaker, state media said on Thursday. In an unusual move, Maldivian Majlis (Parliament) Speaker Mohamed Nasheed announced Rajapaksa's resignation.
"Sri Lankan President GR has resigned. I hope Sri Lanka can now move forward. I believe the President would not have resigned if he were still in Sri Lanka, and fearful of losing his life. I commend the thoughtful actions of the Govt of Maldives. My best wishes to the people of Sri Lanka," he said. Nasheed, the former president, had negotiated Rajapaksa's escape to the Maldives, sources quoted by news agency PTI said.
The President had earlier landed in Singapore with his wife. Singapore said it has allowed Rajapaksa to enter the city-state on a "private visit" from the Maldives and there was no request for asylum from him, after he fled the country in the face of public revolt against his government's mishandling of the economy.
The 73-year-old President fled to the Maldives along with his wife and two security officers on a military jet early Wednesday in the face of a public revolt against his government for mishandling the country's economy.
Rajapaksa, who had promised to resign on Wednesday instead appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as the Acting President hours after he fled to the Maldives, escalating the political crisis and triggering a fresh wave of protests in the island nation.
On Saturday, Rajapaksa had announced that he will step down on Wednesday after thousands of protesters stormed his official residence, blaming him for the unprecedented economic crisis that has brought the country to its knees. Rajapaksa, who enjoys immunity from prosecution while he is president, fled the country without resigning to avoid the possibility of arrest by the new government.
Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, who is now Acting President, on Wednesday informed the Speaker to nominate a Prime Minister who is acceptable to both the Government and Opposition.
President Rajapaka's brothers - former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and ex-finance minister Basil Rajapaksa - on Thursday gave an undertaking to the Supreme Court through their lawyers that they will not leave the country until the Fundamental Rights petition filed against them is heard on Friday, the Daily Mirror reported.
Sri Lanka, a country of 22 million people, is under the grip of an unprecedented economic turmoil, the worst in seven decades, leaving millions struggling to buy food, medicine, fuel and other essentials.
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