Sri Lanka's newly appointed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa addresses the gathering during the ceremony to assume his duties as the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs at the Finance Ministry in Colombo, Sri Lanka October 31, 2018. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte
COLOMBO (Reuters) - Just three years after being voted out in a presidential election in Sri Lanka, strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa is back at the centre of power, appointed prime minister by the man who defeated him.
President Maithripala Sirisena named the pro-China 72-year-old as his number two on Friday after abruptly dismissing the government of incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe. Wickremesinghe has said his removal is unconstitutional and has demanded he be allowed to prove his parliamentary majority.
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