Maldives police launches probe into alleged coup attempt

The Maldives Police Service (MPS) has commenced a probe into allegations that the opposition tried to stage a coup d'etat after the Bank of Maldives (BML) decision on Sunday to suspend foreign transaction allowances on debit and credit cards related to Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) accounts, Maldives-based Maldives Republic reported.

- 

In a statement, the police said that many were shocked by the decision announced by the stateowned Bank of Maldives while the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) was addressing a press conference on the government's financial situation.

Police said that at the same time, hundreds of "bot accounts" were active on social media, calling on residents to take to the streets to overthrow the government, Maldives Republic reported.

There is a reason to believe that the opposition's action after BML's decision, which was made contrary to the directions given by the Muizzu administration, constituted an attempt to overthrow the government, according to the police statement.