Sri Lanka's ruling coalition loses parliamentary majority amid growing protests

FILE PHOTO: Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa presents his national statement as a part of the World Leaders' Summit at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, Britain November 1, 2021. Andy Buchanan/Pool via REUTERS

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's ruling coalition lost its majority in parliament on Tuesday after at least 41 lawmakers walked out of the alliance amid growing unrest over an economic crisis, according to parliamentary proceedings.

"Our party is on the side of the people," said Maithripala Sirisena, leader of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party which withdrew its support for Rajapaksa's coalition.

The shift left Rajapaksa with a minority government, which could make decision making more challenging, although independent lawmakers can still continue to support government proposals.

FILE PHOTO: A woman waves a Sri Lankan flag from inside a car as people shout slogans against Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and demand that Rajapaksa family politicians step down, during a protest amid the country's economic crisis, on a main road in Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

(Reporting by Uditha Jayasinghe, Writing by Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Kim Coghill)