PM Ranil Wickremesinghe Sworn In As Interim President of Sri Lanka

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as Sri Lanka's interim President on Friday until Parliament elects a successor to Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Wickremesinghe was acting President since Rajapaksa fled the country.

He was sworn in as the Interim President before Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya a short while ago, reports The Daily Mirror.

Former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa has submitted a letter of resignation on Friday, after he fled to Singapore following mass protests over his country's economic meltdown.

The speaker of parliament accepted a resignation letter from President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, having verified its authenticity after it was flown from Singapore late on Thursday. 

Parliamentary speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywarden said on Friday that a new President of the crisis-hit Sri Lanka will be elected on 20 June.

He said he expected to elect a new President through Parliament within seven days in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, reports Sri Lankan media The Daily Mirror.