Harini Amarasuriya sworn in as Sri Lanka's new Prime Minister
Colombo, Sep 24: Harini Amarasuriya was sworn in as Sri Lanka's new Prime Minister on Tuesday, becoming the first woman leader since Sirimavo Bandaranaike in the year 2000 to hold the post.
The 54-year-old National People's Power (NPP) leader was sworn in by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who appointed his cabinet of four, including himself.
She has been assigned the portfolios of the Minister of Justice, Education, Labour, Industries, Science & Tech, Health, and Investment.
She has replaced Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, who resigned from his post following the presidential election.
A rights activist and university lecturer, Amarasuriya is the first woman Prime Minister of Sri Lanka since the late Sirimavo Bandaranaike took up office in 1994 and the third female Prime Minister in the country's history.
NPP parliamentarians Vijitha Herath and Laxman Nipunarachchi were sworn in as cabinet ministers.
They would serve as the caretaker cabinet with the imminent dissolution of parliament to call for a snap parliamentary election.
The election could happen in late November, officials said.
Dissanayake, 56, was sworn in as Sri Lanka's ninth president on Sunday following his victory in the presidential election.
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IRS officer booked in rape case in Odisha
Bhubaneswar (PTI): An Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer was booked in Bhubaneswar for allegedly raping a woman, police said on Sunday.
The case was lodged under BNS Section 64 on the basis of a complaint filed at the Saheednagar police station of the city, they said.
The alleged incident took place on January 15 at the officer's official residence in the city, where the woman had gone along with a friend, they added.
The FIR was registered on February 20 after a preliminary inquiry established prima facie evidence, officials said.
The woman, who is married, alleged that the accused officer had threatened to circulate her intimate photographs on social media.
Police Commissioner S Dev Datta Singh said an investigation is underway.
