Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, making a statement in Parliament a day after his No Confidence Vote in Parliament, said he only became the Prime Minister to ensure a Parliamentary election under a Caretaker Government. 

Speaking amid continuous disruption by a group of UNP MPs, Rajapaksa said he did not want to cling on to any post as he had held the Presidency twice. 

However, Rajapaksa blamed Speaker Karu Jayasuriya for conducting the No Confidence Vote in a partial manner, saying such a crucial matter could not be decided by a voice vote. 

Rajapaksa stressed that he would not accept the results of the No Confidence Vote as it was not done in a just and impartial manner. 

Rajapaksa said he had the option of allowing the UNP to continue in the government for one more year. "Had we done that, the repercussions would have been disastrous." 

The former President said the UNP-led government was ruining the country's economy by selling national assets to foreign powers. "Even the President has criticized this matter in public and attempted to resort to some damage control  measures." 

He also blamed the UNP-led government for burdening the public with a fuel price formula. "We will reduce the fuel price tonight as well," Rajapaksa said. 

Rajapaksa, in his speech, asked everyone to support him to go for a General election. A pre-requisite for a snap election, however, is an early dissolution of Parliament that should be demanded by no less than a two-thirds majority in the House.