A leading Buddhist monk in Trincomalee has been thwarted in his attempt to prevent a burial at a Muslim cemetery.
On 12 October, police arrived at the site at Ponmalaikudah in Kuchchaveli and ordered a halt to the final rites, saying the land belonged to the Archaeology Department.
It was pursuant to a complaint lodged by Panamure Thilakawansa Thera.
Mourners informed the divisional secretary, who telephoned the police team at the location and confirmed that the two-acre plot was a Muslim cemetery.
Police left thereafter, allowing the burial to take place.
According to correspondents, several Muslims had been buried there previously.
Thilakawansa Thera faces several court cases in which he is accused of forcibly acquiring Tamil and Muslim land in the eastern province.
