To which religion or sect did Ashoka grant the Barabar caves in Bihar?

Correct answer: (c) Ajivikas

Explanation

Ashoka gave caves in the Barabar hills, in Jehanabad district (Bihar), to the Ajivikas, as inscriptions in the caves record. They are the oldest surviving rock-cut caves in India. They are cut into hard granite, and their inner walls have the mirror-like Mauryan polish. The Lomas Rishi cave there has a carved doorway that copies a wooden hut. Ashoka's grandson Dasharatha gave the nearby Nagarjuni caves to the Ajivikas too.

The Ajivikas, founded by Makkhali Gosala, a contemporary of the Buddha and Mahavira, believed in niyati (fate): everything is fixed in advance, and human effort cannot change it. The grant shows Ashoka's tolerance of other sects, though he himself was a Buddhist.