Former external affairs minister, GL Peiris, has complained of “harassment” from the Criminal Investigations Department, who questioned him on the alleged coup former president Mahinda Rajapaksa and his allies are suspected to have planned.

“In the overall context of the current strident emphasis on good governance, I expressed deep regret that I was subjected to this harassment without any semblance of justification,” Mr Peiris said in a statement.

The former minister said Mr Rajapaksa instructed his secretary to facilitate the handover to the new president and “not one word” was uttered about a coup.

“The basis of the interrogation to which I was subjected, it appeared, was that I was present at Temple Trees early in the morning of 9th January. One would be hard put to discover anything sinister in this perfectly natural circumstance; I considered it only right and proper for me to be with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whom I had loyally served for seven years as a senior member of his Cabinet, at a time when support and solidarity were called for. According to my scale of values, this is a basic human obligation,”

“I also told the officers of the CID that the former President attached particular importance to ensuring that no untoward incidents should be allowed to mar the handing over of power and, to that end, he directed, within my hearing, that the then Leader of the Opposition, Mr Ranil Wickremesinghe, should be consulted immediately with regard to practical arrangements conducive to a smooth transition. Mr Wickremesinghe was contacted by telephone and in fact arrived at Temple Trees a short while later for a discussion with President Rajapaksa.”

Gotabaya rejects ‘baseless’ coup allegations (22 January 2015)