The annual tree planting drive in the Northern Province to honour fallen LTTE cadres was marked with a cultural programme and plant sale and exhibition in Jaffna on Saturday.

Sri Lanka’s former president Mahinda Rajapaksa has left the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) with a reported 44 other parliamentarians, as a flood of lawmakers joined the Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP) this weekend.

Rajapaksa took up his membership on Sunday morning before SLPP chairman and former Sri Lankan foreign minister G L Peiris.

^{File photograph. M K Stalin, current president of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).}

Political parties in Tamil Nadu condemned the dissolving of Sri Lanka's parliament, describing it as a "political emergency that threatened stability and jeopardised the welfare of Tamils", PTI reports. 

The DMK leader M K Stalin said the dissolution of parliament was “trampling of the Constitution”,  “atrocious” and the "murder of democracy". 

The UN Secretary General expressed concern over Sri Lanka's ongoing political crisis, calling on he government to ensure the safety of all Sri Lankans and to uphold its commitments to human rights, justice and reconciliation. 

Sri Lanka's political turmoil sparked by the president's sacking of the prime minister last month descended further into crisis last week after his decision to dissolve parliament, sacking all 225 lawmakers and calling fresh parliamentary elections. 

<p>The European Union said it&nbsp;expected a "swift and peaceful" resolution to Sri Lanka's political&nbsp;crisis in line with the constitution.</p> <p>Sri Lanka's political turmoil sparked by the president's sacking of the prime minister last month descended further into crisis last week after his decision to dissolve parliament, sacking all 225 lawmakers and calling fresh parliamentary elections.&nbsp;</p>

At least six people have been declared missing after heavy floods burst irrigation tanks in Mullaitivu, as flooding affected many parts of the North-East this week.

The Sri Lankan military has reportedly been deployed in the region, as flooding from heavy rains has affected as many as 647 people.

Namal Rajapaksa, the Sri Lankan parliamentarian and son of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, has joined the Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP) leading a potential exodus from Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).

“I am joining the [SLPP] effective immediately,” Namal tweeted on Saturday. “We will strive to create a broader coalition with many stakeholders under the leadership of [Sirisena and Mahinda Rajapaksa] to face the upcoming General Election and come out victorious.”

<p>The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is set to take legal action against the sudden dissolution of parliament by Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena.</p> <p>The party’s spokesperson and MP, M A Sumanthiran said the party would be going to the Supreme Court to challenge the dissolution.</p> <p>The 19th amendment to the constitution makes it ‘crystal clear’ that the president did not have the authority to dissolve parliament before it had passed its four and a half year term, Sumanthiran said.</p>

Sri Lanka’s United National Party (UNP) has met with the elections commission and plans to take action in the Supreme Court against the dissolution of parliament by President Maithripala Sirisena.

“The emerging tyranny of Maithripala Sirisena will be fought in the courts, in Parliament and at an election,” Mangala Samaraweera, the UNP’s finance minister said.

The UNP MP and state minister Harsha de Silva said the party had conveyed to the elections commission that they expected the commission to “act according to the law” and to “do what [they] had to, to save our democracy from [Sirisena] and illegal government.”

<p>Sri Lanka's president Maithripala Sirisena on Friday brought the Department of Government Printing under his power, announcing an extraordinary gazette notice to that effect.&nbsp;</p> <p>The move came as Sirisena dissolved parliament, sacking all 225 lawmakers and calling fresh parliamentary elections on January 5, 2019.&nbsp;</p> <p>Despite international criticism and calls to reconvene parliament, Sirisena has vowed not to bow to such pressure.&nbsp;</p>