Patna

A Bihar government council, responsible for supervising activities of registered temples and mutts, has sought financial reports of the last one year from around 4,500 such religious establishments, officials said Wednesday.

The decision assumes significance in the backdrop of controversy over the alleged embezzlement of donations received at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

"To ensure financial transparency, the Bihar State Religious Trust Council has sought the financial reports for the period from April 2025 to May 2026 from around 4,500 registered temples, mutts, dharmasalas and Kabir mutts across the state," BSRTC chairman Ranbir Nandan told PTI.

All these religious establishments will have to submit their financial reports within a month, he said.

The BSRTC will audit the financial records of these religious establishments, Nandan said.

"All registered temples, mutts, dharmasalas and Kabir mutts must furnish details of their income, expenditure, bank balances and deposits in their reports," he said.

They must submit the financial details to the BSRTC every three months, and such compliance will be made mandatory, he added.

"If they fail to submit their financial reports, the BSRTC will be forced to consider reconstituting the management committees of the non-compliant establishments," the chairman said.

All public temples/mutts, trusts and dharmasalas in Bihar must be registered with the BSRTC, according to the Bihar Hindu Religious Trusts Act, 1950, and they are bound by the council's directives.

According to the latest data compiled by the BSRTC, the registered temples/mutts in the state own more than 18,456 acres of land.

A large number of unregistered temples and mutts also exist in the state.

Large-scale irregularities have been found where priests of such temples/mutts have been selling and buying immovable assets by claiming ownership, another BSRTC official said.

According to the latest compilation by the state law department, the maximum number of unregistered temples/mutts are in Vaishali at 438, followed by Kaimur Bhabhua (307), West Champaran (273), Bhagalpur (191), Begusarai (185), Saran (154), and Gaya (152).

Around 813 acres of land are owned by 307 unregistered temples/mutts in Kaimur Bhabhua, and 722 acres belong to 100 unregistered public temples and mutts in Khagaria.

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In Banka district, around 332 acres of land belong to 78 unregistered temples and mutts, the official added.