Colombo: Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe was on Wednesday elected as Sri Lanka’s new President by Parliament.
He defeated party rival Dullus Alahapperuma in the parliamentary vote today.
Wickremesinghe secured 134 votes while his nearest rival Alahapperuma got 82. Leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake secured just three votes.
He will now have to serve the rest of Rajapaksa’s term, which ends in November 2024.
Worth mentioning, Sri Lanka’s ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country last week after thousands of protesters stormed his presidential residences and other government buildings, calling for his resignation.
