Sri Lanka's parliament has accepted ousted president Gotabaya Rajapaksa's resignation, ending rule by a family that wielded power for nearly 20 years.

Mr Rajapaksa quit after fleeing to Singapore amid mass protests over his mismanagement of the economy.

Sri Lanka is in the grip of economic chaos as it faces an acute shortage of food, fuel and other basic supplies.

Mr Rajapaksa's resignation paves the way for the country to begin the process of electing a new president.

Not long ago Sri Lanka was the South Asia's most developed nation but right now they are in a severe  economic crisis.

The country is $ 51 billion in debt, the currency is crashing as medication, fuel and some food are in short supply.

Following the situation the school exams had to be cancelled because of printing papers.

Economic crisis in Sri Lanka  is increasingly dramatic with residents life savings disappearing into thin air.

One estimate from John Hopkins University shows real inflation at over 130 percent in March.

The government has even been asking airlines to stop refueling in the country. 

Many Sri Lankans have had enough of the horrific situation.

The home of the government officials have been torched and the sitting Prime Minister even had to be flee to a naval based for his own safety.

Protestors also stollen the presidential residence. They were swimming in the president's pool, eating his food and drinking his alcohol. 

The Rise of a Powerful Family, the Rajapaksa Dynasty.

Rajapaksa's has been a powerful family in the country for a while.

Their wealth came from rice and coconut farming and their power from activities of politics.

In Sri Lankan politics you have to be somebody to be elected.

Razeen Sally a professor in at the National University in Singapore told the Washington Post, " You cannot win politics of you are not from a well established family"

The second of nine children Mahindra Rajapaksas became president in 2005 and for ten years the country became a family business as the family's influence grew.

Soon other brothers, sons, nephews, cousins, daughter-in-laws and other relatives joined the government occupying senior positions in various administrations.

Sri Lanka was now a family affair, Mahindra named his brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa a Defence Secretary while Basil and their eldest brother Jamal were placed in charge of irrigation and economic development.

Sri Lanka enjoyed years of growth fuelled by mountain of foreign debt but as much as their rule things were going well despite some critics.

Many Sri Lankans were fans of the ruling family not only for bringing up the family in social standings but also for bringing peace to the nation.

War Heros

From1983 to 2009, there was a horrific civil war in the country. A label group called the Tamil Tigers could fight  against the government citing discrimination.

After 26 years of war the Sri Lankan Defence Forces defeated the Tamil Tigers in 2009 and this brought the civil war to the end.

At this time the president and the Defence Minister were brothers.

After the defeat of the rebels, the pair were held as heroes. Mahindra enjoyed the adulation of voters who approved of his bloody yet decisive victory in a 26 years civil war against the Tamil rebels but it was not a squeaky clean image for the brothers.

Allegations of corruption including questionable deals with be Chinese State swirled around Mahindra.

His brother Gotabaya was also implicated through to a lesser extent. He was facing scrutiny over the purchase of MIG fighters from Ukraine but these scandals did not prevent the family from spending big.

He promised big Infrastructure projects including the Chinese build airport which sits largely empty.

He tried to jumpstart growth by borrowing heavily and attracting the foreign capital by propping up Sri Lankan rupee.

In the short term the strategy worked and the economy boomed.