Maithripala Sirisena says there was a plan to deny him Sri Lanka presidency

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena has said that there was a "plan" to deny him victory by his predecessor even after the results showed that he had won the January 8 Presidential election.

"You are aware of a plan by (former President Mahinda) Rajapaksa to stay in power for two more years by not declaring the result," Sirisena yesterday said while addressing his home constituency of Polonnaruwa in the north central province.

This was his first comment on the issue and it came days after Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera filed a police complaint over the alleged coup attempt by Rajapaksa and his close aides following his shocking defeat in the polls.

The new government has launched an investigation into an alleged coup. Several top rankers including the former External Affairs Minister GL Peiris and Chief Justice Mohan Peiris have already been quizzed on the alleged plot.

Rajapaksa has dismissed the charge, saying he walked out of his official residence even before the final results came to be announced heralding a smooth transition.

Sirisena, 63, accused two-time president Rajapaksa, 69, of personally targeting him for vicious attacks using the stage media.

He said that he faced difficulties which no other presidential candidate before him had faced.