President Gayoom has been ruling the Maldives for 25 years

Mr Gayoom told the BBC recent arrests had not been part of a crackdown, but were aimed at restoring order after his opponents resorted to violence.

His comments came as a European Union team began a fact-finding visit to the Indian Ocean republic following the imposition of a state of emergency.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party has rejected Mr Gayoom's version.

'Fundamentalists'

In an exclusive interview with the BBC, President Gayoom said: "There is no crackdown.

He created violence and used it as a pretext to impose a state of emergency Mohamed Lateef, Maldivian Democratic Party

"Some people are not happy because they thought they might lose their power and their position."

He said there were other "fundamentalists" and government opponents who were "disaffected for personal reasons".

"These people gathered and somehow they orchestrated this attempt to derail the substantial reform agenda that I have already proposed."

Security forces arrested 180 people following pro-democracy demonstrations earlier in August.

MALDIVES BASICS 1,200 islands in archipelago Population is over 300,000 One-party rule since 1978 Low-lying islands vulnerable to rise in sea-levels

Those detained include a former attorney general, Mohammed Munavvar, and a former minister, Ibrahim Hussain Zaki.

Mr Gayoom denied allegations they had been mistreated in custody, and said an investigation would deliver justice.

"Nobody is above the law," he said.

Speaking to the same programme, Mohamed Lateef of the Maldivian Democratic Party called Mr Gayoom a "congenital liar".

He said the president was a "brute" who had created violence and used it as a pretext to impose a state of emergency.