A foreign monk practicing meditation in the Bambaragasthalawa area passed away following a leopard strike.

Environmentalist Nayanaka Ranwella, Secretary of the Wildlife Conservation Forum, stated that the incident occurred on the night of the 25th while the monk was meditating inside a cave.

The deceased, identified as 43-year-old Venerable Nanda, was a Czech national.

Records indicate that he first arrived at the Kudumbigala Forest Hermitage in 2021, staying for about a month before returning to the Czech Republic.

He returned to Sri Lanka in January last year and has been residing in the Bambaragasthalawa area since then.

For approximately one year, he had dedicated his time to meditation in the Kudumbigala and Bambaragasthalawa regions.

The Panama Police Station is conducting further investigations into the matter.