Sri Lanka’s new president calls parliamentary elections to consolidate mandate

Anura Kumara Dissanayake waves to supporters during a public rally in Dehiowita, Sri Lanka (Eranga Jayawardena/AP)

Sri Lanka’s new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake has dissolved the country’s parliament and called for parliamentary elections in less than three weeks in an effort to consolidate power after his weekend election victory.

A government notification said that parliament was dissolved effective from midnight on Tuesday, and that parliamentary elections were set for November 14.