The Centre has imposed a fine of Rs 80 lakh on the Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee (BTMC), which manages the Mahabodhi Temple, for allegedly violating the provisions of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA).

Mahabodhi Temple, a Unesco world heritage site, is considered one of the holiest by Buddhists across the world.

In a notice to the BTMC, the home affairs ministry (MHA), pointed out that it
had neither been filing the return for foreign currency and remittances received as donations nor had it renewed its registration under the FCRA.

Attributing the imposition of the fine to a communication gap, the Bihar government on Monday said it would convey the actual situation to the MHA. “There seems to be a communication gap with the MHA with regard to the issue,” Gaya district magistrate Thiyagarajan SM, who is also the BTMC chairman, told The Telegraph.

“The MHA had exempted some government institutions, including the BTMC, from filing returns under the FCRA. Hence, the returns were not being filed. Suddenly, this notice arrived a couple of days ago,” Thiyagarajan added.

He said a decision had been taken to pay the fine so that there were no hiccups in the smooth functioning of the Mahabodhi Temple.