SC Declines Plea for Buddhist Autonomy Over Mahabodhi Temple Management

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu) : The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a plea demanding "liberation" of the sacred Mahabodhi Temple in Bihar by entrusting exclusive management and control to Buddhists. A bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and K. Vinod Chandran refused to entertain the writ petition filed directly before the top court challenging the validity of the Bodh Gaya Temple Act, 1949, and told the petitioner to approach the Patna High Court."We are not inclined to entertain the petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. However, liberty is given to the petitioner to approach the (Patna) High Court," ordered the Justice Sundresh-led Bench.

As per the plea, the sacred Bodhi Tree, under which Lord Buddha attained enlightenment, is in “danger of decay” due to the mismanagement of the Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee (BTMC). Alleging violation of fundamental rights to profess religion and manage religious institutions as guaranteed under the Constitution, the plea, filed through advocate Jaydip Pati, demanded that the management and control of the Mahabodhi Temple should be entrusted to Buddhists alone.

Under the Bodh Gaya Temple Act, 1949, the plea contended, the management of the temple lies with BTMC – a committee consisting of a majority of Hindus. "The situation at present, whereby the holiest Buddhist shrine in India and indeed the world (also a World Heritage Site since the year 2002), is under the management and control of non-Buddhists is in gross violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution," contended the petition.

Further, it sought directions to restrain non-Buddhists from carrying on non-Buddhist religious practices and rituals at the Mahabodhi Temple. It is believed that Emperor Ashoka, around the 3rd century BC, built a temple near the Bodhi tree and consecrated a statue of Lord Buddha. Recently, Buddhist monks under the All India Buddhist Forum held a protest in Patna’s Bodh Gaya demanding complete autonomy only to the Buddhist community to manage the Mahabodhi Temple.