President Ranil Wickremesinghe has called for a probe against the controversial statement related to Lord Buddha made by Pastor Jerome Fernando who heads a Born-Again religious congregation, it was reported.

According to Lankadeepa, the President had instructed the head of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to commence an immediate investigation.

Pastor Jerome is accused of having made derogatory statements related to Lord Buddha in front of a packed congregation recently, claiming that even the Buddha needed Jesus, Lankadeepa reported.

Concerns over the pastors’ statements were raised at a national security council meeting held on Monday morning, where the National Security Head pointed out to the President that such comments could lead to communal tension in the country.Responding to the concern, President Ranil Wickremesinghe stated no individual will be allowed to destabilize the country, adding that those found to be instigating religious disharmony should be probed and stern action should be initiated, The Lankadeepa report added

The President thereafter, advised the senior security heads to probe the controversial statements of the pastor after which the National Security Head had immediately handed over the investigation to the CID Chief.The CID has been requested to deploy a team and commence an extensive investigation into the matter.

A video showing pastor Jerome commenting on Lord Buddha made rounds on social media over the weekend, causing uproar among the followers of Buddhism in the country.