Pakistan, May 9 -- Sri Lankan authorities have arrested a senior Buddhist monk over allegations of sexually abusing an underage girl, in what is being described as one of the country's highest-profile cases involving clergy misconduct.

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According to police, 71-year-old Pallegama Hemarathana was taken into custody from a private hospital in Colombo, where he had reportedly gone for treatment while investigations were underway. The arrest is linked to allegations that he abused an 11-year-old girl in 2022.

Police said the alleged incident took place at a revered temple in Anuradhapura, nearly 200 kilometres north of Colombo, where Hemarathana serves as chief priest. A...