Colombo, April 22: Plantations Minister D M Jayaratne, a close ally of President Mahinda Rajapaksa has been sworn-in as Prime Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka on Wednesday as the new parliament convenes on Thursday for the first time.
Jayaratne, senior most leader of the ruling Freedom Party next only to Rajapaksa, has replaced Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, official sources said.
They said Jayartne was sworn-in as Prime Minister by Rajapaksa hours after the appointment was made, they said.
The job of prime minister is largely ceremonial in Sri Lanka, but in the event of the president’s death, the holder would be expected to step in to the top role.
Born in June 7, 1931 he is one of the earliest members of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party when it was founded in Kandy in 1951. He was educated at Doluwa Maha Vidyalaya where he was later a teacher. He was later postmaster at Doluwa, Gampola from 1960-62.
He was defeated in the General Election of 1977 and later re-elected from the Kandy District. In the 1989 General Election, he obtained 54,290 votes; the highest polled by a candidate of the district from the SLFP and was a member of the opposition in the parliament.
He was a key member in organizing the People’s Alliance and in the General Election of 1994, he was elected again with the highest number of votes from the Gampola electorate and appointed Minister of Land, Agriculture and Forestry in the cabinet of Prime Minister Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga.
68-year-old Jayaratne was a contender for the top job and has been openly stating that he should be made the Prime Minister.
The ruling UPFA has won 144 seats in the 225-member assembly at the April 8 elections, falling short of two-thirds majority by six seats.
Jayaratne is a party stalwart who became a member of parliament in 1970 after a career as a postman in the central district of Kandy.
—Agencies