JHU urges India to protect Buddhist pilgrims in TN

11 August 2011 02:30 pm Views - 3616

The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) urged the Indian Government to take necessary action and to ensure the security of Buddhist pilgrims who have been threatened and physically abused in Tamil Nadu.

“These groups with links to the LTTE had threatened most of the pilgrims not to visit the state,” Ven Hadigalle Wimalasara Thera said.

The JHU further stated that these incidents arose following the meeting the US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton had with the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayaram Jayalalitha.

“More than 300,000 Buddhist devotees visit Tamil Nadu and millions of devotees come to the state from all parts of the world. This is not a threat to our pilgrims but to all Buddhist devotees in the world,” Ven. Wimalasara Thera said.

Most of these Buddhist places of worship were protected by law and given to Buddhist devotees through struggles made by Anagarika Dharmapala who is regarded as a true son of our country, the thera added.

“We request Buddhists around the world to visit our island as it has a rich history as the country has a peaceful environment,” the thera noted.

Parliamentarian Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera said that they hope that the Buddhist community living in India would take these incidents seriously and act against them.

“We will soon inform our partners and Buddhist organisations about the incident which took place in Tamil Nadu and also about the steps taken by them to spread these incidents,” the thera said. (By Supun Dias)