By IANS,
Colombo : The Maldives government has appointed a commission to inquire into the controversial transfer of power which former president Mohamed Nasheed has termed a coup orchestrated by military and politicians who were then in the opposition, a Maldivian diplomat said Wednesday.
President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik has formed the Commission of National Inquiry, Xinhua quoted Maldivian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Hussain Shihab as saying.
The three-member commission is headed by former minister for defence and national security Ismail Shafeeu and includes the president of the first Human Rights Commission of Maldives, Ahmed Mujthaba.
The US and the UN that rushed to the Maldives immediately after the power transfer had called for a national inquiry, claiming international interference would worsen the ongoing crisis.
Waheed has asked the commission to carry out an independent and impartial investigation into events in the Maldives between Jan 14 and Feb 8, the Maldivian diplomat added.
The period covers the resignation of Mohamed Nasheed as president after weeks of opposition-led protests following the arrest and detention of Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed.
The diplomat said the commission will also inquire into the violence between the police and Nasheed’s supporters during a Feb 8 protest.