COLOMBO, May 16 (Xinhua) -- Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan, the leader of a former rebel group was sworn in as the chief minister for Sri Lanka's Eastern Province Friday evening, government officials said.

    Pillayan was sworn in before President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo following last Saturday's Eastern Provincial Council election, presidential officials said.

    Pillayan heads the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal (meaning Tamileelam People's Liberation Tigers) or the TMVP which broke away from the mainstream Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2004.

    The TMVP is currently an ally of Rajapaksa and contested last Saturday's election under Rajapaksa's ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA).

    The UPFA won 52 percent of the votes to win the Eastern Provincial Council where all three communities Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim live in almost equal proportions.

    Pillayan comes from the predominantly Tamil Batticaloa district and he was accused by opposition parties of using arms to terrorize the voters and candidates of rival parties in the run-up to the election.

    The main opposition United National Party has called the election a fraud citing large scale election malpractice.

    In Sri Lanka, the chief minister is the second highest executive official in the province after the governor.