Vaninta, a monk in his 20s, committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree in the temple complex, the police said.

Chatindra, another monk, said: “We were not sure about the reason behind his suicide.” The deceased hailed from Tripura and was studying Pali language in Bodh Gaya, he added.

The Mahabodhi temple, declared a World Heritage Site in 2002 by Unesco, is visited by thousands of tourists annually, especially from countries where there is a strong Buddhist community.