The vice-president of the Maldives has been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate the president, the BBC quoted the home minister as saying.

Ahmed Adeeb was in detention and being charged with high treason, Umar Naseer said on Twitter.

President Abdulla Yameen narrowly escaped injury when a blast struck the boat he was using to return home from the airport late last month.

In recent years, the Maldives has been rocked by political infighting.

Yameen's election has been the subject of drawn-out wrangling.

Security has been tightened in the capital Male amid fears of "turmoil" triggered by the arrest, says the Maldivian newspaper Haveeru.

"By early morning Saturday, lorries loaded with policemen and soldiers were seen on nearly every street," it reports.

Four others were also arrested on Saturday, the Maldives Independent website quoted police sub inspector Abdulla Nawaz as saying, but he gave no further details.

The website said Mr Adeeb's arrest had "surprised and enthralled many Maldivians".

President Yameen and his wife were traveling to Male from the island where the airport is located on 28 September when their speedboat was hit by the bomb blast.

They had been to the hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

Source: MENA