<p>Journalists and media workers told Al Jazeera they now lived in fear following the return of Rajapaksa to the political scene.&nbsp;</p> <p>Several journalists with Sri Lanka's public media company said they &nbsp;"are thinking of quitting their jobs because of increased government censorship".&nbsp;</p> <p>"We have been taken hostage," a journalist at Lakehouse told the news agency.</p>

<p>The United National Party's (UNP) spokesperson said it was looking at ways of ousting the Sri Lankan president, Maithripala Sirisena.&nbsp;</p> <p>The country was thrown into political turmoil last month after Sirisena sacked the prime minister, UNP leader, Ranil Wickremesinghe and replaced him with Mahinda Rajapaksa.&nbsp;</p> <p>"We feel that President Sirisena neither is nor fit to hold his post considering the way he believes and acts and therefore we are focusing on removing him under the article 38(2) of the constitution," the party’s media spokesman Harin Fernando told Colombo reporters.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was sacked as Sri Lanka's prime minister on October 26, said he would still be willing to work with the president, who appointed Mahinda Rajapaksa as the new premier.&nbsp;</p> <p>Asked by The Hindu whether he would be willing to work with President Sirisena, Wickremesinghe said, "I’ll have no problem working with him, that’s a question you must ask him."&nbsp;</p> <p>"The Constitution doesn’t make provision for personal prejudices,” he added, during an interview with the paper on Tuesday at Temple Trees.&nbsp;</p>

<p>With Sri Lanka's political crisis ongoing, foreign selling and exiting from the Colombo Stock Exchange continued at a staggering rate.&nbsp;</p> <p>Over Rs3 billion was sold on Monday, prompting the UNP's state minister for economic affairs, Harsha de Silva to tweet, "Once again massive dumping of shares by foreign investors from #SriLanka stock market. Over LKR 3 billion today. Where is the confidence the #FakePM said they brought in? #CoupLK @RW_UNP"</p>

<p>Sri Lanka's coalition government did not sufficiently address the issues faced by the Tamil people, the TNA leader R Sampanthan told the new US ambassador, Alaina Teplitz yesterday.&nbsp;</p> <p>Highlighting the issues of political prisoners, disappeared persons, resettlement, military occupation of land and rehabilitation of former cadres Sampanthan told Teplitz that progress had been very slow.&nbsp;</p> <p>A sense of disappointment was present among Tamil people, he added, due to the failure to deliver on these issues.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The US State Department today urged Sri Lankan president, Maithripala Sirisena to "reconvene parliament immediately" warning that the uncertainty was undermining the country's international reputation.&nbsp;</p> <p>"We urge #SriLanka’s President to reconvene parliament immediately to resolve the political crisis. Further delay compounds uncertainty in Sri Lanka, and undermines its international reputation and the aspirations of its people for good governance, stability and prosperity," the US State Department spokesperson, Heather Nauert tweeted.&nbsp;</p> <p>Sri Lanka's parliament was prorogued last month by Sirisena, after he sacked the prime minister and appointed the former president, who oversaw the killing of tens of thousands of Tamils, Mahinda Rajapaksa as the new premier.&nbsp;</p>

The UK's Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Mark Field said the FCO was "deeply concerned by the political situation in Sri Lanka". 

Responding to a written question by the shadow foreign secretary, Emily Thornberry asking if the UK recognised Ranil Wickremesinghe or Mahinda Rajapaksa as prime minister, Field replied, "it is our position that we recongnise states not governments."

"Naturally the FCO is deeply concerned by the political situation in Sri Lanka," Field added. 

<p>The Sri Lankan police force follows the orders of the Sri Lankan president, the force’s top chief has said, as the country’s political crisis over who is the rightful Prime Minister continues.</p> <p>Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara made the comments at a media briefing at the police headquarters in Colombo. He said that Sri Lanka Police would operate according to the gazette notification issued by President Maithripala Sirisena.</p>

<p>The skeletal remains of at least 232 people have been unearthed from a mass grave in Mannar, with over 100 days of excavations having taken place thus far and more bodies reportedly still to be discovered.</p> <p>Senior Judicial Medical Officer Saminda Rajapakse said that since excavations began over fove months ago, 224 complete bodies have been discovered with the remains of other people making up a total of 232. The remains of children are amongst those found at the mass grave, with many bearing&nbsp;“deep and unusual” lacerations on their bones, according to those excavating the site.</p>

<p>The International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated it was “monitoring the situation closely” in Sri Lanka, political turmoil in Colombo continues.</p> <p>"The IMF is not in the political realm but clearly we take note of recent developments," IMF spokesperson Gerry Rice said.</p> <p>"We are monitoring the situation closely and we remain in contact with our counterparts at the technical level."</p> <p>Rice went on to state that, “I don't have any assessment as yet on potential program implications there in Sri Lanka".</p>