Balangoda Kassapa Thero and others produced before court

Ten people, including Venerable Balangoda Kassapa Thero and other monks, were taken to court today. These suspects are currently in remand custody due to their involvement in the incident regarding a Buddha statue in Trincomalee. The case against these individuals, which includes four monks, is being heard at the Trincomalee Magistrate’s Court. On February 9, the Magistrate ordered that all ten remain in remand until today, February 11, as part of the investigation. They were arrested for placing a Buddha statue at the Trincomalee Bodhiraja Viharaya on November 16, 2025, violating coastal conservation laws. This action led to a complaint from the Department of Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Management, claiming that an unauthorized structure was built and a Buddha statue was placed in the coastal protection zone of Trincomalee town. In a related matter, Most Venerable Dr. Ittapana Dhammalankara Thero, the Chief Prelate of the Kotte Sri Kalayani Samagri Dharma Maha Sangha Sabha of Siyam Maha Nikaya, expressed his concerns in a letter to the President. He highlighted the arrests and ongoing remand of the ten individuals, including the monks, related to the Buddha statue case. Venerable Dhammalankara Thero stated that the actions taken against the monks, including government intervention, were a serious offense against the Buddha Sasana. The Chief Prelate urged the President to act quickly to secure the release of the ten individuals, including the monks. Note: Due to legal restrictions, the Ada Derana Editorial team has decided to disable comments on all articles about ongoing court cases.