Man held for intrusion into Dalai monastery

Tuesday, January 05, 2010

PTI
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Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, greets devotees as he prepares to begin a series of lectures at Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya, about 130 kilometers (81 miles) south of Patna, India, Tueday, Jan. 5, 2010. Bodh Gaya is the town where Prince Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment after intense meditation and became the Buddha. The lectures will continue till Dec.9. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

Gaya: A man was detained for four hours for allegedly trying to enter the old Tibetan Monastery in Bodh Gaya where spiritual leader the Dalai Lama was staying.

The police detained the man, who hails from Pakribadawan in neighbouring Nawada district, last night and interrogated him for four hours, police said.

He was later allowed to go after interrogation revealed that the man was not a threat to the Dalai Lama, they added.

The Dalai Lama arrived in Bodh Gaya yesterday to take part in the seven-day Geluk Monlam puja at Mahabodhi Mahavihara and delivered discourses at Kalchakra maidan this morning.

"The spiritual leader visited UNESCO world heritage Mahabodhi temple to offer prayers," Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee member Dr Arvind Kumar Singh said.

Stringent security arrangements have been made in view of the threat perception to the Dalai Lama, police said.