Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has hit back at "vexatious" allegations his office leaked confidential information from a Nauru detention centre security report to the media.
The federal police have been asked to investigate whether Mr Morrison's staffers may have breached section 70 of the Crimes Act by misusing privileged information.
Last week, News Corp Australia aired allegations from internal Transfield documents that claimed Save the Children staff had been fabricating abuse stories and coaching asylum seekers into self harm.
The aid group has strenuously denied the claims which are now before an independent inquiry also looking into asylum seeker sexual abuse allegations.
Australian Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young made the police referral.
Information was leaking from Mr Morrison's office at "suspiciously convenient times", she said.
"If the minister's office has been involved in a breach of the Crimes Act, I expect the full force of the law to be applied," Senator Hanson-Young said.
"You can't have a minister playing a witch hunt game against aid workers meanwhile thinking ... his own staff can get off scot free."
Ten aid workers have been ordered off the island over alleged misuse of privileged information.
Labor immigration spokesman Richard Marles is concerned Save the Children were not told about the allegations before their publication in the media.
"That is extraordinary behaviour from a government which has a media strategy which certainly is not in the public interest," Mr Marles told Sky News.
A federal police spokeswoman confirmed they had received the referral and would evaluate it as per usual but would not comment further.
A spokeswoman for Mr Morrison said the Australian public was quite used to Senator Hanson-Young making "vexatious and spirited allegations".
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