COLOMBO, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Leader of Sri Lanka's United National Party, Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was once sacked from the post of prime minister in late October, was sworn in as the prime minister by President Maithripala Sirisena again on Sunday, ending a nearly two-month political crisis which erupted after his surprising dismissal.

Wickremesinghe was sworn in around 11:15 a.m. (0415 GMT), which was considered as an auspicious time for Wickremesinghe, who took over the post for the fifth time.

The South Asian island country had plunged into instability after Sirisena replaced Wickremesinghe with Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was then twice sacked by parliament. Rajapaksa resigned on Saturday as a government shutdown loomed.