GAYA:
Bhadant Pragyasheel, Buddhist monk and former chief priest of the world famous
Mahabodhi temple has sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention to end
the century old dispute over management rights of the shrine associated with
Buddha's enlightenment.
For nearly 125 years now Hindus and Buddhists are engaged in a tussle over
management rights of the shrine. Whereas the Buddhists demand total Buddhist
control over the shrine management, outfits like VHP and RSS question Buddhist
monopoly over Buddha on the ground that Buddha was not a Buddhist alone deity
as Hindus too worship Buddha as a Vishnu incarnate.
In a petition addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bhadant Pragyasheel,
who, besides being the former chief priest of the shrine, is also the General
Secretary of the All India Buddhist Mahavihar Liberation Action committee, has
reiterated the demand for total Buddhist control over the shrine. When
Srilankan Buddhist missionary Angarika Dhammapala first raised the demand for
Buddhist monopoly over Mahabodhi shrine management in the year 1891, the shrine
was the personal property of the chief of the Shivite monastery of Bodh Gaya.
Subsequently, the Bihar govt. incorporated the Mahabodhi Temple Management Act
1949 in which the shrine was to be jointly managed by a nine member committee
comprising five Hindus and four Buddhists with the Hindu District Magistrate of
Gaya being the ex officio chairman of the committee and in the case of Gaya DM
being a non Hindu, the state govt had to nominate a Hindu as the chairman of
the committee.
A couple of years back, the Act was amended to make the post of chairman
religion neutral and as per the amended act, whatever be the religious belief
of the Gaya DM he/she will be the ex officio chairman of the management
Committee.
In his petition addressed to PM Modi, the shrine former chief priest has
invoked articles 25 and 26 of the constitution guaranteeing religious freedom
to the Indian citizens and control of followers of a particular religion over
their respective places of worship was there in the spirit of constitution. The
Buddhists maintain that as Hindus manage their temples, Muslims manage the
mosques and Sikhs manage the Gurudwaras etc. the Buddhists too should have
complete management rights over Mahabodhi temple, the seat and symbol of
Buddha's enlightenment.
Bhadant Pragyasheel hoped that the PM will do justice to the Buddhists and take
the initiative to transfer Buddha shrine management to an all Buddhist
Committee instead of the joint Hindu-Buddhist management under the present
system.
A few years back the then Bihar Govenor RS Gavai and Acharya Kishore Kunal,
Chief of the Bihar Religious Trust Board worked on a formula to resolve the
century old dispute. As per the Gavai-Kunal formula, Buddhists were to be given
more say in the shrine management with the post of shrine management committee
secretary being reserved for the Buddhist. But the formula was abandoned
following the premature transfer of Gavai from Bihar to Kerala as Governor.