Mahinda Rajapaksa sworn-in as Sri Lanka PM for fourth time

Former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Sunday was sworn in as the Prime Minister for the fourth time, days after his party secured a landslide victory in the parliamentary elections. He took oath at the sacred Rajamaha Viharaya, a Buddhist temple in Kelaniya, a north Colombo suburb. His brother and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was also present, The Daily Mirror reported. The swearing-in ceremony took place at 9.32 am (local time).

Mahinda Rajapaksa previously served as President of Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015. He was the Prime Minister from 2004 to 2005 and then for brief periods in 2018 and 2019.

Rajapaksa brothers' Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party secured a stunning victory in the country's parliamentary elections held on August 5, winning 145 seats in the 225-member Parliament.

According to Colombo Page, the SLPP received 6,853,693 votes and secured 128 electoral seats and with the 17 national list members totalling 145 seats in the parliament although just shy of the two-thirds majority.

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