Who among the following Sunga ruler destroyed the Sanchi Stupa?

The correct answer is Pushyamitra Shunga.

Key Points

• Based on Ashokavadana, it is presumed that the stupa may have been vandalized at one point sometime in the 2nd century BCE, an event some have related to the rise of the Shunga emperor Pushyamitra Shunga who overtook the Mauryan Empire as an army general. Hence, Option 1 is correct.
  • It has been suggested that Pushyamitra may have destroyed the original stupa, and his son Agnimitra rebuilt it. 
  • The original brick stupa was covered with stone during the Shunga period
  • The style of the Shunga period decorations at Sanchi bear a close similarity to those of Bharhut, as well as the peripheral balustrades at the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya.

Additional Information

• Pushyamitra Sunga
  • He was Brahmin army chief of Brihadratha, the last king of the Mauryas.
  • During a military parade, he killed Brihadratha and established himself on the throne in 185 or 186 BC.
  • According to some historians, this was an internal revolt against the last Mauryan king.
  • Some say it was a Brahminical reaction to the Mauryan overwhelming patronage of Buddhism.
  • Pushyamitra Sunga’s capital was at Pataliputra.
  • He successfully countered attacks from two Greek kings namely, Menander and Demetrius.
  • He also thwarted an attack from the Kalinga king Kharavela.
  • He conquered Vidarbha.
  • He followed Brahminism. Some accounts portray him as a persecutor of Buddhists and a destroyer of stupas but there has been no authoritative evidence to this claim.
  • During his reign, the Stupas at Sanchi and Barhut were renovated. He built the sculptured stone gateway at Sanchi.
  • He performed Vedic sacrifices such as Ashvamedha, Rajasuya, and Vajapeya.
  • Pushyamitra Sunga patronized the Sanskrit grammarian Patanjali.
  • According to the Puranas, his reign lasted for 36 years. He died in 151 BC.