Member of Parliament Dinesh Gunawardena took the oath as the new Prime Minister of Sri Lanka before President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Friday morning, reports Daily Mirror.

Gunawardena's appointment comes a day after six-time prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the country's new president, reports Reuters.

According to Sri Lanka's news portal Ada Derana, Gunawardena embarked on active politics in late 1970s and entered the parliament in 1983 representing the Maharagama electoral district.

He has held cabinet ministerial portfolios under various governments.

Gunawardena has also served as the chairperson of three Parliament Select Committees to identify electoral reforms and as the Leader of the House and the Chief Government Whip in the Sri Lankan parliament.

He was born in 1949 to leftist politician Philip Gunawardena who was fondly known as ‘the Lion of Boralugoda’ and Kusumasiri Gunawardena.

Gunawardena has been leading the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna since 1973, following the demise of his father, the founder of the party.

He received his school education at Royal College in Colombo and later studied at the Netherlands School of Business, graduating with a diploma in business administration and management. He later enrolled at the University of Oregon to study international business.