COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court on Tuesday overruled President Maith­ripala Sirisena’s dissolution of parliament in a major boost to sacked prime minister Ranil Wickreme­singhe’s fight to reclaim the post from an arch-rival.

The heavily guarded court also halted preparations for a snap election in the latest twist in a power struggle that began when Sirisena dismissed Wickre­mesinghe on October 26 and replaced him with former president Mahinda Rajapakse.

The 225-member parliament could meet as early as Wednesday to decide which of the duelling pair it backs.

Amid mounting international concern, Wickreme­singhe refused to accept his sacking and remained in his official residence while Rajapakse sought to build a parallel administration.

Wickremesinghe’s United National Party (UNP) is the largest single party in the assembly. He told reporters that he expected the legislature to meet on Wednesday, as was scheduled before Sirisena dissolved the body to prevent a majority test.

“I will go to parliament tomorrow and we will show we are the legitimate government of Sri Lanka,” Wickremesinghe said at the Temple Trees residence that has become the opposition headquarters.

Wickremesinghe called the court ruling “a victory for the people and a victory for decent politics in this country”. Parliamentary officials said Speaker Karu Jayasuriya called a meeting of political party leaders on Wednesday morning ahead of a formal meeting of lawmakers who could vote between Wickremesinghe and Rajapakse.

There was no immediate comment from Sirisena or Rajapakse after the Sup­reme Court’s unanimous decision.

The UNP-led petitions against the dissolution of parliament and the three-judge bench, headed by the Chief Justice Nalin Perera, gave the landmark decision to a packed court guarded by hundreds of heavily armed police officials and commandos. The court said it would give a final verdict on the petition on December 7, after three more days of hearings.

The judges ordered the independent Elections Com­mission to halt preparations for the January 5 vote, which Sirisena had announced on Friday.

Tight security

Security at the courtroom had been beefed up before the hearing as authorities feared clashes between rivals. However, there was no trouble and supporters of Sirisena melted away when it was known that parliament had been restored.

During his time in office from 2001 to 2004, Wickre­mesinghe is credited with pulling Sri Lanka out of its first-ever recession, in part with reforms that have endeared him to the West. While the US and the EU have raised concern over the crisis in Sri Lanka, China has recognised the appointment of Rajapakse.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2018