COLOMBO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A local Sri Lankan Municipal Councillor on Tuesday filed a petition in the Court of Appeal against ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe continuing to be a member of Parliament.
The petition was filed by Colombo Municipal Councillor Sharmila Gonawala.
In addition, Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, General Secretary of Wickremesinghe's political party, the United National Party (UNP), and the Parliament's Secretary General Dhammika Dissanayake have also been named as respondents in the case.
The petition was filed in the Court of Appeal amidst a political crisis ongoing in the country, after President Maithripala Sirisena on Oct. 26 sacked his cabinet and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe and appointed former president Mahinda Rajapaksa to be the new prime minister.
The Wickremesinghe-led UNP has alleged that the president's move was illegal as Wickremesinghe enjoys a majority in Parliament.
Presently, following a Court of Appeal order, Rajapaksa and his government have been temporarily suspended from holding public office till Dec. 12, after 122 lawmakers filed a petition saying the government did not hold a majority in Parliament as it had been defeated in two no confidence motions.
Later this week, the Supreme Court is also expected to issue a crucial verdict on President Sirisena's decision to dissolve Parliament and hold a snap Parliamentary Election. Enditem
