Sri Lanka's new parliament convenes for inaugural session

COLOMBO - Sri Lanka's new parliament convened for its inaugural session on Thursday following a Parliamentary Election which saw the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) winning a landslide victory by securing 145 seats in the 225 member parliament.

Legislators gathered in parliament on Thursday morning after which SLPP MP Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena was unanimously elected as the new speaker of parliament after his name was proposed by Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and seconded by opposition MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara.

Soon after he was appointed, Abeywardena was congratulated by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and all other legislators.

SLPP MP Johnston Fernando was appointed as the chief government whip while Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena was appointed as Leader of the House.

Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is expected to visit the inaugural session of parliament on Thursday afternoon to address the new House.

Sri Lanka peacefully held its Parliamentary Election on Aug. 5 amidst strict health guidelines due to a COVID-19 pandemic which has infected over 2,800 people in the island country.

The election led to the ruling SLPP winning 145 seats. The opposition United People's Front led by former Presidential candidate Sajith Premadasa, as the runner-up, obtained 54 seats.