Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera taken into custody!

Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera taken into custody!

Popular religious speaker, Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka Thera was taken into custody by the Criminal Investigation Department this morning. The allegation against the thera was that he had illegally kept an elephant calf in his possession and

the thera had explained matters to the media saying that the animal had been left close to the temple by someone on which occasion he had looked after it.

According to the law of this country though a permit should be secured if one wishes to keep an elephant in one's possession, in this case the thera had not acceded to fulfill that requirement. When news was spreading around during the past that Uduwe Thera was to be arrested, the thera had even filed a petition with the Human Rights Commission appealing that he be spared from being taken into custody.

What CID sources said was that an investigation team had gone early this morning to Allen Methiniyarama in search of the thera and he was taken into custody when he was there. The CID has informed that future court proceedings would follow regarding this incident.