Sri Lanka, Feb. 2 -- Four Buddhist monks, including Venerable Balangoda Kassapa Thero, and six other individuals have been further remanded by the Trincomalee Magistrate's Court until 9 February 2026 in connection with a dispute over a Buddha statue placed on coastal land.

The case relates to an incident on 16 November 2025, when the monks and others installed a Buddha statue at the Trincomalee Bodhiraja Vihara, allegedly in violation of coastal conservation laws. The matter escalated when the group protested against police attempts to remove the statue from land said to belong to the Sri Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Bodhiraja Viharaya along Kotuwa Road.

Investigations later revealed that a restaurant was operating on the disputed coastal land...