Damage to antique Buddha statue: JO calls for inquiry

26 May 2016 06:07 am

The Joint Opposition (JO), today, called for an inquiry into how a valuable bronze Buddha statue belonging to the Anuradhapura era had been damaged after it was taken to Temple Trees to grace an exposition of relics.

JO stalwart MP Wimal Weerawansa said at a media briefing that the statue had been removed from the National Museum without the approval of the museum's director. Calling it a grave crime under the laws governing archaeological affairs, he said action should be taken forthwith against those responsible.

"The statue had been damaged. After that, it had been repaired with glue and returned to the museum," he said.

Mahinda Yapa Abeywardan MP, a former cultural affairs minister, said that artefacts could not be removed from the museum without Cabinet approval and that this was a grave crime.(Kelum Bandara and Yohan Perera)