<p class="title">Sri Lanka's sacked prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was reinstated Sunday, his party said, ending a 51-day crisis that had paralysed the island nation and pushed it towards debt default.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The 69-year-old leader was sworn in by President Maithripala Sirisena, who sacked him on October 26 and triggered a power struggle that brought the country's government to a standstill.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Wickremesinghe had refused to step aside since being sacked by in late October and replaced by former leader Mahinda Rajapakse.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka had drifted without a functioning government for nearly two months as the rival factions jostled for power in parliament and the courts.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sirisena had vowed to never reappoint Wickremesinghe -- who he publicly castigated in speeches in recent weeks -- as prime minister under his watch.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The acrimony between the two was underscored Sunday when Sirisena barred journalists from attending the swearing-in ceremony -- leaving it to Wickremesinghe's legislators to announce the appointment.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"We thank the citizens of the country who fought the illegal seizure of power and ensured that democracy was restored," his United National Party of Sri Lanka posted on Twitter.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sirisena's appointee Rajapakse was unable to govern, failing many times to muster a majority in parliament.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He was defeated six times on the floor of the legislature before being forced to step down on Saturday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sirisena suffered a huge setback when the highest court in the country ruled last week that he acted outside the constitution when he sacked parliament in early November.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The court also confirmed Friday that Rajapakse and his purported cabinet could not exercise the powers of the office they held.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A spokesman for Wickremesinghe said he was expected to form a cabinet in the coming days, with priority given to the 2019 budget, without which foreign debt servicing may not be possible.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka had been braced for a government shutdown as parliament failed to approve spending for 2019, and ratings agencies downgraded the country's credit rating amid fears of a sovereign debt default.</p>
<p class="title">Sri Lanka's sacked prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was reinstated Sunday, his party said, ending a 51-day crisis that had paralysed the island nation and pushed it towards debt default.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The 69-year-old leader was sworn in by President Maithripala Sirisena, who sacked him on October 26 and triggered a power struggle that brought the country's government to a standstill.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Wickremesinghe had refused to step aside since being sacked by in late October and replaced by former leader Mahinda Rajapakse.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka had drifted without a functioning government for nearly two months as the rival factions jostled for power in parliament and the courts.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sirisena had vowed to never reappoint Wickremesinghe -- who he publicly castigated in speeches in recent weeks -- as prime minister under his watch.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The acrimony between the two was underscored Sunday when Sirisena barred journalists from attending the swearing-in ceremony -- leaving it to Wickremesinghe's legislators to announce the appointment.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"We thank the citizens of the country who fought the illegal seizure of power and ensured that democracy was restored," his United National Party of Sri Lanka posted on Twitter.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sirisena's appointee Rajapakse was unable to govern, failing many times to muster a majority in parliament.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He was defeated six times on the floor of the legislature before being forced to step down on Saturday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sirisena suffered a huge setback when the highest court in the country ruled last week that he acted outside the constitution when he sacked parliament in early November.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The court also confirmed Friday that Rajapakse and his purported cabinet could not exercise the powers of the office they held.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A spokesman for Wickremesinghe said he was expected to form a cabinet in the coming days, with priority given to the 2019 budget, without which foreign debt servicing may not be possible.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sri Lanka had been braced for a government shutdown as parliament failed to approve spending for 2019, and ratings agencies downgraded the country's credit rating amid fears of a sovereign debt default.</p>