COLOMBO, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Thursday reiterated that his party held a majority in the parliament as a mass demonstration led by his party was held in capital Colombo.
Addressing the rally, Wickremesinghe said a no confidence motion on new Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse which was presented in parliament on Wednesday had been passed by a majority.
Wickremesinghe said his party was ready to face a parliamentary election but only if it was held according to the country's constitution.
Security was heightened in several areas in Colombo and several roads were cordoned off during the demonstration.
Earlier on Thursday, Rajapakse, when delivering a special statement in the parliament, called for all parties to agree to hold a parliamentary election in order to resolve the weeks-long political turmoil.
Sri Lanka's parliament erupted in violence on Thursday, as legislators from Rajapakse's party and Wickremesinghe's party broke out in fist fights on the floor of the House, television footage showed.
The parliament speaker later called for a meeting between party leaders and a decision was announced that parliament would be adjourned till Nov. 21.
Sri Lanka has been embroiled in a political turmoil since Oct. 26, when President Maithripala Sirisena surprisingly sacked his prime minister Wickremesinghe and appointed former president Rajapakse to the post.
Sirisena last Friday dissolved the parliament and called for a snap parliamentary election in January next year, but the decision was overturned by the Supreme Court in a ruling on Tuesday.
