Sri Lankan President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa has tendered his resignation in a letter sent by email to parliamentary speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardenena, according to an announcement from the speakerβs office Thursday.
Rajapaksa landed in Singapore on a flight from Maldives earlier after fleeing his country in the wake of anti-government protests.
Abeywardenena has received an email with Rajapaksaβs resignation, the speakerβs office confirmed to CNN Thursday, but added that βwe cannot accept such an email at face value.β
βThe legality of it needs to be ascertained. It has been shared with the relevant authorities for the verification of the same,β the office said.
βOnce we have official confirmation and it is legally verified, we hope to make a statement regarding it tomorrow [Friday] morning.β
Abeywardenenaβs office added that it is expecting to receive a paper copy of the letter, but that would take longer as it would be sent from Singapore.
