Amila Thera further remanded till January 8

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 December 2009, 12:47 GMT]
Horana Magistrate Tuesday ordered further remand for Venerable Dambara Amila Thera, an Executive Member of the National Patriotic Movement (NPM) until January 8 over allegations that he cheated persons, promising them foreign employment. The monk is being held at the Kalutara remand prisons.

CID is carrying out further investigations. The allegations were leveled against him after he extended support to Common opposition presidential candidate Gen (retd) Sarath Fonseka.

Meanwhile, tensed situation prevails in Bandaragama since Tuesday afternoon after two groups, one led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and another led by local leader of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), clashed over the arrest and remand Venerable Dambara Amila Thera.

The clash took place when the JVP staged a protest against the arrest of the monk while supporters of another political party had come to the area for election campaigning, police spokesman SSP I.M Karunaratne said.

Panadura and the Bandaragama police rushed to the site and dispersed the supporters and brought the situation under control.

A woman injured in the clash was later admitted to the nearby hospital, the police said.