Bodh Gaya shopkeepers continue protest for eighth day

Patna,(BiharTimes): All the 58 shops of Mahabodhi shopping complex in Bodh Gaya remained closed for the eighth consecutive day on Sunday in protest against the district administration’s move to shift them elsewhere. 

They claimed that there was no UNESCO guideline to shift any existing building or shop from the World Heritage Site.

On the other hand the National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials on Sunday convened a meeting of the owners of cyber cafés operating in the vicinity of Mahabodhi Temple and asked them to install CCTV cameras at the main entrance of their establishments. They were also asked to maintain registers of visitors.

Meanwhile, the NIA on Saturday night detained a youth from Bengal for interrogation in connection with the July 7 blasts.

The youth, aged around 30, according to sources, came to Bodh Gaya about a fortnight before the blasts. He was spotted moving suspiciously near the temple a couple of hours before the blasts.

He has been taken into custody on the basis of the CCTV footage, showing his presence near the temple on the day of the blasts. However, his details have not been disclosed.

On Sunday an NIA team quizzed some representatives of foreign monasteries and a place of worship near the temple. The credentials of a Myanmar woman staying there even after her visa lapsed were also being verified.