Sri Lanka:Ranil Wickremesinghe elected as new President

In Sri Lanka, acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Wednesday elected new President, the Speaker announced the result after election was held in Parliament amid tight security. Troops were kept on high alert.In the 225-member Parliament, Ranil Wickremesinghe obtained 134 votes while Dullas Alahapperume obtained 82 votes and Anura Kumara Dissanayake has obtained 3 votes. A total of 223 MPs including the Speaker voted while two MPS abstained from the voting.  Wickeremesinghe had been serving as acting President after Gotabaya Rajapakasa had to resign from the top post following widespread protests in the country.  Rajapakasa first flew to Maldives and then to Singapore after tens of thousands of protesters stormed his official residence in the capital Colombo. The worst economic crisis in Sri Lanka's history has prompted an acute shortage of essential items like fuel.

The bulk of Wickremesinghe’s support came from the Rajapaksas’ discredited SLPP. Immediately after winning the elections, the newly elected President said, “I request Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa and other opposition parties including former Presidents Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena to work together.” “We were divided for the last 48 hours. That period is now over. We have to work together now,” he said.