The sacred relics of the Buddha and his disciples, Arahant Sariputta and Maha Moggallana, returned to India on Tuesday following a 25-day exhibition in Thailand.

The relics arrived in a special IAF flight that departed from Krabi, Thailand. A delegation led by Tashi Gyalson, the chief executive councillor of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), accompanied the relics back to India.

They were received with full state honours by IAF officials, in the presence of Union Minister Meenakashi Lekhi and Buddhist monks.

The exhibition of the relics in Thailand drew over four million devotees. As part of the exposition titled ‘Shared Heritage, Shared Values,’ organized by India’s Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC), the relics travelled to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Ubon Ratchathani, and Krabi provinces.

They arrived in Bangkok on February 22, accompanied by an official delegation led by Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar and Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Virendra Kumar.

(Inputs from ANI)