The upheaval in Sri Lanka has been blamed on an “international conspiracy” with fingers being directly pointed at China and a majority of lawmakers not yet approving the installation of Beijing’s ally as the Prime Minister.

Sri Lanka has been plunged into crisis since Friday, when President Maithripala Sirisena abruptly sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and swore in ex-President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the new Prime Minister.

Sirisena said the move was motivated by a plot to kill him, and by economic collapse. Wickremesinghe says it was illegal and he is still Prime Minister.

The standoff has important geopolitical implications in a country long influenced by its neighbour India, but which became massively indebted to China to finance huge infrastructure projects during Rajapaksa’s decade as President.

Most of Sri Lanka’s foreign allies, including India, the European Union and the US, have urged Sirisena to abide by the Constitution.

But China, long seen as a supporter of Rajapaksa, congratulated him on becoming Prime Minister, drawing accusations from Wickremesinghe’s supporters that Beijing was behind the attempt to change the government. Chinese officials deny interfering in Sri Lanka’s affairs.

Rajapaksa (Agencies)

The Rajapaksa faction has sought to win over lawmakers to back it in Parliament. Two Wickremesinghe loyalists have pledged support to Rajapaksa and sources close to Rajapaksa have said there will be more crossovers.

Ranjan Ramanayake, a legislator from Wickremesinghe’s United National Party (UNP), said some lawmakers had been offered up to Rs 800 million each to switch sides and support Rajapaksa. Reuters was unable to confirm this.

“This is an international conspiracy,” Ramanayake told reporters at Wickremesinghe’s official residence, accusing China of “spending money to buy over members”.

A Chinese embassy official in Colombo denied the allegation and said Beijing maintained good relations with all Sri Lankan parties, including the UNP. “China never interferes in other countries’ internal affairs,” the official told Reuters. “We’re against all this interference from any foreign country.”

Cheng Xueyuan, China’s envoy to Sri Lanka, met Rajapaksa with a congratulatory message on Saturday. The embassy official said the ambassador had also met Wickremesinghe and Speaker Karu Jayasuriya.

India and western countries have concerns about Rajapaksa’s ties to China, after he ushered in billions of dollars of investment from Beijing to rebuild the country following the end of a 26-year war against the LTTE in 2009.

A police officer examines the scene of the shooting at the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation office on Sunday. (AFP)

That investment has since put the tiny nation deep in debt and forced it to hand over control of a strategic port to China.

“As a democracy and a close friendly neighbour, we hope that democratic values and the constitutional process will be respected,” said Raveesh Kumar, spokesman for India’s external affairs ministry.“We will continue to extend our developmental assistance to the friendly people of Sri Lanka.”

In a letter sent on Sunday, Speaker Jayasuriya urged the President to protect Wickremesinghe’s rights and privileges “until any other person emerges from within Parliament as having secure confidence of Parliament”.

In a statement released late on Sunday, Rajapaksa, who ruled as President from 2005 to 2015, said he would “eschew the politics of hate and set up an interim government that will protect the human rights of all citizens, that will protect the independence of the judiciary and establish law and order”.

He called on lawmakers to support his new government.

On Saturday, Sirisena suspended Parliament until November 16, a move the ousted Prime Minister’s supporters say was intended to prevent lawmakers from demonstrating their continued support for Wickremesinghe.

Since Rajapaksa was sworn in, trade unions allied to him have blocked government buildings to prevent members of the former cabinet from reaching their offices.

In an address to the nation, Sirisena said his action to change the government was “totally in accordance with the Constitution and on the advice of legal experts”.