&w=3840&q=100)
At 90, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama's succession test begins
Archis Mohan Delhi
Listen to This Article
At least two Union ministers, the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, which borders China, and several legislators were present at the 14th Dalai Lama's 90th birthday celebrations in Dharamshala on Sunday. Messages wishing him a long life and endorsing his decision to entrust the Gaden Phodrang Trust with the sole authority to recognise the reincarnation of the 15th Dalai Lama poured in from around the world.
However, questions persisted whether India will be able to resist pressure from Beijing on the succession of the Tibetan spiritual leader.
As the Dalai Lama sat on a dais — with portraits of Mahatma

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Indian Express
10 minutes ago
- Indian Express
BRICS leaders condemn J&K attack: On terror, zero tolerance
In a declaration adopted at the ongoing summit in Rio de Janeiro late on Sunday night, the BRICS leaders condemned the Pahalgam terror attack 'in the strongest terms', and called for 'combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, terrorism financing and safe havens'. While the declaration did not take any names, the cross-border terror reference is seen to be aimed at Pakistan. Addressing the BRICS session on peace and security, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Pahalgam was a 'direct attack on the soul, identity and dignity of India'. He said 'giving silent consent to terrorism, supporting terror or terrorists' for 'personal or political gain' should not be acceptable under any circumstances, and 'there should be no hesitation in imposing sanctions against terrorists'. 'We condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22, 2025, during which 26 people were killed,' the BRICS declaration said, referring to the Pahalgam attack. 'We urge to ensure zero tolerance for terrorism and reject double standards in countering terrorism,' it said, amplifying the Indian government's message as conveyed by the multi-party political delegations sent to world capitals earlier. 'We call for an expeditious finalisation and adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the UN framework. We call for concerted actions against all UN designated terrorists and terrorist entities,' the resolution said. In the past, China has blocked attempts to sanction Pakistan-based terrorists and terrorist groups at the UN. In his speech, Modi said: 'Terrorism has become the most serious challenge for humanity today. Recently, India faced an inhuman and cowardly terrorist attack. On April 22, the terrorist attack in Pahalgam was a direct attack on the soul, identity and dignity of India. This attack was a blow not only on India but on the entire humanity. In this hour of grief, I express my heartfelt gratitude to the friendly countries who stood with us, who expressed support and condolences.' 'Condemning terrorism should be our 'principle', not just a 'convenience'. If we first see in which country the attack took place, against whom, then it would be a betrayal against humanity. There should be no hesitation in imposing sanctions against terrorists. Victims and supporters of terrorism cannot be weighed on the same scale. For personal or political gain, giving silent consent to terrorism, supporting terror or terrorists, should not be acceptable under any circumstances. There should be no difference between words and actions regarding terrorism. If we cannot do this, then the question naturally arises whether we are serious about the fight against terrorism or not,' he said. Addressing the session on 'Reform of Global Governance', Modi said: 'Two-thirds of humanity still lack proper representation in global institutions built in the 20th century. Many countries that play a key role in today's global economy are yet to be given a seat at the decision-making table. This is not just about representation, it's also about credibility and effectiveness. Without the Global South, these institutions are like a mobile phone with a SIM card but no network. They're unable to function properly or meet the challenges of the 21st century.' 'The expansion of BRICS and the inclusion of new partners reflect its ability to evolve with the times. Now, we must demonstrate the same determination to reform institutions like the UN Security Council, the WTO, and Multilateral Development Banks. In the age of AI, where technology evolves every week, it's unacceptable for global institutions to go eighty years without reform. You can't run 21st-century software on 20th-century typewriters,' he said. The BRICS declaration also called for a 'comprehensive reform of the United Nations Security Council, with a view to making it more democratic, representative, effective and efficient, and to increase the representation of developing countries in the Council's memberships so that it can adequately respond to prevailing global challenges and support the legitimate aspirations of emerging and developing countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America, including BRICS countries.' 'We stress that the United Nations Security Council reform will lead to the amplified voice of the Global South. We reiterate support to the aspirations of Brazil and India to play a greater role in the United Nations, including its Security Council,' the declaration said. The BRICS grouping includes India, Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Iran. The two-day summit began on Sunday.


Hindustan Times
40 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Reuters X account restored in India after suspension over legal demand
NEW DELHI -The Reuters News account on X was restored in India on Sunday, a day after the social media platform suspended it, citing a legal demand. Reuters X account restored in India after suspension over legal demand "At this time, we are no longer withholding access in INDIA to your account," X said in an email to the Reuters social media team, without elaborating. Representatives for X, Reuters and the Indian government did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the restoration of the account. Earlier on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Indian government's Press Information Bureau told Reuters that no Indian government agency had required withholding the Reuters handle, adding that officials were working with X to resolve the problem. A Reuters spokesperson had said the agency was working with X to resolve this matter and get the Reuters account reinstated in India as soon as possible. Reuters World, another X account operated by the news agency which was blocked in India, was also restored late Sunday night. The main Reuters account, which has more than 25 million followers globally, had been blocked in India since Saturday night. A notice told X users that "@Reuters has been withheld in IN in response to a legal demand". In an email to the Reuters social media team on May 16, X said: "It is our policy to notify account holders if we receive a legal request from an authorized entity to remove content from their account." "In order to comply with X obligations under India's local laws, we have withheld your X account in India under the country's Information Technology Act, 2000; the content remains available elsewhere". Reuters could not ascertain if the May 16 email was linked to Saturday's account suspension nor could it determine what specific content the demand referred to, why its removal was sought or the entity that had lodged the complaint. While the email did not specify which entity had made the request or what content they sought to remove, it said X had been advised that in such cases, a user could contact the secretary of India's Information and Broadcasting Ministry. The secretary, Sanjay Jaju, did not respond to requests seeking comment. The 2000 law allows designated government officials to demand the takedown of content from social media platforms they deem to violate local laws, including on the grounds of national security or if a post threatens public order. X has long been at odds with India's government over content-removal requests. In March, the company sued the federal government over a new government website the company says expands takedown powers to "countless" government officials. The case is continuing. India has said X wrongly labelled an official website a "censorship portal", as the website only allows tech companies to be notified about harmful online content. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.


Indian Express
44 minutes ago
- Indian Express
After govt steps in, X unblocks Reuters' handles
Denying any government order to X (previously Twitter) to withhold Reuters' account, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology was learnt to have directed the social media company to unblock two accounts of the international news agency on Sunday. Hours later, the Reuters accounts were restored. On Saturday night, X blocked the handles of Reuters and Reuters World, with a message displayed on their accounts stating they had been withheld in India 'in response to a legal demand'. But in a statement on Sunday morning, an official spokesperson of the IT Ministry said, 'There is no requirement from the Government of India to withhold Reuters handle. We are continuously working with X to resolve the problem.' A senior official said the government had sent blocking orders to X related to some posts made by the news agency during Operation Sindoor in early May, but the platform, at the time, had not taken any action on the posts. 'When they blocked two accounts of Reuters on Saturday night, it caught us by surprise, because we had never asked X to block the accounts. Some takedown requests were made to X for posts made by Reuters during Operation Sindoor on May 7-8, but those posts were never taken down,' the official said. 'But now they turn around and block the accounts when no such demand was made, which we have been informally informed was an erroneous understanding of our previous orders. We have communicated with them verbally and also sent them a written order, asking to reverse course and unblock the accounts. There is no intent to block legitimate news platforms in India,' the official said. X did not respond to queries on the issue. 'We are working with X to resolve this matter and get Reuters account reinstated in India as soon as possible,' a Reuters spokesperson said earlier in the day. During Operation Sindoor, the Indian government had directed social media platforms like X to block several pieces of content and accounts that it felt were spreading deliberate misinformation and posting information that could subvert and undermine the Armed Forces' ongoing operations at the time. While it had blocked a range of accounts it believed were linked to Pakistan and China, it had also directed blocking the X accounts of news platforms BBC Urdu and Outlook India, which was later revoked. Earlier, in a statement on May 9, X had said that it had received executive orders from the Indian government asking for over 8,000 accounts to be blocked, including those belonging to 'international news organisations and prominent X users'. The social media platform said that falling foul of the executive orders could subject it to potential penalties, including significant fines and imprisonment of its local employees. The Indian Express had reported that following a flurry of what it called 'misinformation' on social media platforms related to Operation Sindoor, a small team at the IT Ministry — which was set up last year during the Lok Sabha polls to flag and take down election-related misinformation on social media platforms — received reinforcement of personnel and was asked to step up monitoring and flag misleading content related to the conflict to be taken down. The monitoring happened round-the-clock, with people working across shifts.