Sri Lanka’s newly appointed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who lost two motions of no confidence last week, may lose his government’s budget even as he clings to power.

Lawmakers opposed to Rajapaksa said they intend to remove funding for staff salaries and other costs in a vote on November 29. The Opposition, which regards his administration as illegitimate, will also seek approval to slash the government’s overall budget, they said.

It was the latest of several new twists on Monday in the political chaos that has embroiled Sri Lanka for the past few weeks.

Leaders of political parties backing Rajapaksa and President Maithripala Sirisena refused to allow a third motion of no confidence to be held through name call or electronic voting on Monday.

The previous two motions passed through a voice vote but Sirisena said they hadn’t followed the proper procedures. Sirisena appointed Rajapaksa last month after firing Ranil Wickremesinghe as prime minister, setting off the political turmoil on the island off India's southeast coast.

Rajapaksa is seen as a close ally of China, though Beijing has denied accusations that it was instrumental in getting him appointed.

Dinesh Gunawardene, a Rajapaksa loyalist, said Wickremesinghe’s coalition had handed a motion“to suspend all government expenses” to the speaker and the parliament secretary.

“According to the previous no confidence motions, both Rajapaksa and his government are out.

“There is no government, but there are MPs,” M.A. Sumanthiran, a lawmaker who had voted for the no confidence motion, said.