The Attorney General's Department is to appoint a panel of senior States Counsel to assist the Presidential Commission's inquiry into the Treasury bonds controversy, top government sources said. 

The panel of States Counsel will mainly  offer legal assistance to the Presidential  Commission handling the inquiry, they further added. 

The Presidential Commission has been instructed by the President to present its first report in three months, the President's Media Unit said last week. 

Supreme Court Judges K.T. Chithrasiri, P.S. Jayawardena and Rtd. Deputy Auditor General K. Velupillai have been appointed as members of the Commission of Inquiry. 

The 55-page COPE report on the bond issue - which is currently with the Attorney General's Department  - recommends that former Governor of the Central Bank Arjuna Mahendran should be held directly responsible over the bond transaction and that legal action should be taken against him and responsible individuals.  

The report also observed financial irregularities in the connection with the bond issue and recommended to recover the losses incurred from those involved.