The Chinese monastery was authorized to light the lamp for a limited duration on Thursday, following which they reportedly installed a platform and a board in such a way that the entire Maya Devi Temple was obstructed from view.

Besides, hundreds of Chinese individuals have started moving around the temple premises, Epardafas reports.

The Member Secretary of Lumbini Development Trust, Sanuraja Shakya, told Epardafas that the monastery had sought permission to conduct a lamp lighting programme and had erected the stage for only a few hours.

Shakya, in a statement to Epardafas, clarified that the stage was not intended to overshadow the entire Maya Devi temple and that the permission granted was only for the programme and not for the construction of a large stage.

“Permission has been taken from us to hold a programme, not to build a stage. There was no such thing as making it so big. Only for two hours,” Sanuraja Shakya stated.

The location that houses the Maya Devi Temple and the Ashoka Pillar within the Lumbini complex is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, according to reports.