Sri Lankan Parliament ousts president amid protests

Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament, will become the new President of Sri Lanka, said Rauff Hakeem, head of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, Report informs via foreign media.

“Speaker to take over as temporary President according to the constitution,” Rauff Hakeem tweeted. “Party Leaders to immediately agree on an all-party government. This has a few glitches and several alternatives are being discussed.”

Earlier, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe convened an emergency meeting of party leaders in connection with the protests in the capital. During the meeting, the Parliament ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The ex-president has allegedly left the country.