මාරාන්තික උපවාසයක් කළ කස්සප හිමි ඇතුළු හිමිවරු පොලිසි බාරයට

Newswire and Ada Derana report that Balangoda Kassapa Thera and two other monks were taken into police custody on the 12th, following tension at their protest site near Ruwanwelisaya in Anuradhapura. Lankadeepa, citing Anuradhapura police, reports that four monks and a group of laypeople were taken into custody after a disturbance near the almsgiving area in front of the shrine.

Newswire says the monks had begun a fast unto death to oppose the Anuradhapura Sacred City Development Project, and Ada Derana reports that the fast had entered its second day on the 12th. Newswire says an argument arose between Kassapa and another group that included Rajanganaye Saddharathana Thera and laypeople.

In a separate report, Newswire says Kassapa was directed to appear before the Colombo District Crimes Division on the 13th to give a statement in an ongoing investigation into his allegation that police officers assaulted him during unrest at a Satyagraha protest at Viharamahadevi Park in Colombo on October 17. Newswire says an earlier notice asked him to attend on the 11th, but he did not appear or notify authorities that he could not attend; Udamaluwa police then took steps to issue a fresh notice.