An inquiry has been launched into a bizarre wedding ceremony for police dogs in Sri Lanka.
The police probe has been demanded by the country's culture minister, who said the ritual undermined traditional wedding rituals and should be strongly condemned.
The police have already apologised for the wedding, which involved nine pairs of police sniffer dogs dressed in shawls, hats and socks were placed on a decorated platform like those used in traditional Buddhist weddings.
'You may now lick the bride'
Police spokesman Buddhika Siriwardena said that police Chief N.K. Ilangakoon had ordered the inquiry at the request of Culture and Arts Minister T.B. Ekananayake, who said the wedding undermined traditional wedding rituals and should
be strongly condemned.
Police have said the wedding was a humorous way to encourage the breeding of sniffer dogs, which are expensive to import.
The dog marriages were registered by an official in the presence of a crowd of veterinary surgeons, medical doctors, top police officers and the public at a ceremony on Monday in the central town of Kandy. Local television showed the dog couples later being driven away in a decorated police jeep for their "honeymoons".
The ceremony received wide publicity, and strong criticism from cultural officials.
Police later apologised for any damage to the country's cultural heritage, saying in a statement the goal was to save money by breeding dogs accustomed to local weather and food.