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First Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
How India should approach Dalai Lama's succession issue
India is displaying extraordinary strategic patience with China, the CTA and Tibetan Buddhists have been expecting India to greenlight the succession and reincarnation outlined by the Dalai Lama read more After a weeklong celebration of his 90th birthday, His Holiness the Dalai Lama is in Leh preaching and relaxing. Did India miss an opportunity to test, if not reset, its Tibet policy over the succession of the Dalai Lama? Ahead of Foreign Minister S Jaishankar's first visit to China after the Galwan clashes and pro forma normalisation of bilateral relations, China noted that 'Tibet-related issues, including the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, are a thorn in India-China relations.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Beijing's pincer attacks came in quick barrages from its embassy in Delhi and the Foreign Ministry in Beijing before and after the Dalai Lama's 90th birthday, ignoring Tibet's history, religion, and traditions and letting its invasion and occupation of Tibet in 1950 do the speaking. India's silence is due to China's military and economic power and Delhi's constraint to reset its Tibet policy. This has allowed Beijing to salami slice in East Ladakh, freeze progress on border settlement, and act adversarially during Op Sindoor. The Sikyong (President) of the Central Tibetan Administration (Government in Exile), Penpa Tsering, had offered ideas on succession last year. On 2 July, in a recorded video statement, His Holiness Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso said that the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the offices of the Dalai Lama, and the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) will search and find his successor, which Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiran Rijiju endorsed: 'No one has the right to interfere or decide who the successor will be; only he or his institution has the authority to make the decision.' China immediately protested Rijiju's statement, warning India against interfering in its internal affairs at the expense of bilateral relations. Delhi did not push the matter further. India's Foreign Ministry said, 'India does not take any position or speak on matters concerning faith and religion but will continue to uphold freedom of religion.' Rijiju also clarified he was echoing feelings of Tibetans, speaking for himself and not the government. It is India's moral and cultural right and responsibility to prevent China from usurping Tibetan Buddhism from its homeland. On 6 July, his birthday, the Dalai Lama said he would reincarnate in a free country and live to be 130 years old, adding his reincarnation could be found in Ladakh, Dharamsala, or Arunachal Pradesh. Prime Minister Modi congratulated the Dalai Lama on his birthday. China protested against PM Modi's greetings, fired volleys at the US for endorsing the Dalai Lama, and issued its own interpretation of succession, asserting China's prerogative to anoint the 15th Dalai Lama. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The problem in reincarnation is the longevity of regency when leadership may be exercised by the Sikyong, CTA, or a Council of Elders. Secondly, long overdue is a reset in India's Tibet and One China policy. India accepted Tibet as part of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 2003 for China accepting the international border in Sikkim. Neither the delineation of the LAC nor the Political Framework for a Border Resolution 2005, which skips delineation, has materialised; but instead, China has been salami slicing in East Ladakh. Further, it never implemented autonomy (Dalai Lama's Middle Path) for Tibet but indulged in wholesale Sinicisation of Tibet (69 per cent of people in Tibet are non-Tibetan Buddhists). Delhi has many reasons to reconsider its Tibet policy. It cannot do so on its own and needs a willing strategic partner like the US. The US Tibet Policy Act (2002) was amended in 2020 to the Tibet Policy and Support Act, which is complemented by the Resolve Tibet Act (2024), which has several important issues, including reincarnation and Tibet not being the TAR (Tibet Autonomous Region) created in 1965. The CTA, which shifted from Lhasa to Dharamsala in 1959, will next year be releasing the new map of Tibet highlighting this cartographic fraud. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Next, the boundary issue. While Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Pema Khandu, who attended the Dalai Lama's birthday, has said that his state has a border with Tibet, not China, US Congressional legislation of 2020 has recognised the McMahon Line as the boundary between 'Arunachal Pradesh, which belongs to India, and China,' refuting Beijing's claim on South Tibet. Tsering and his predecessor, Lobsang Sangay, have consistently said Tibet, not China, has a border with India and recalled the name of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, advising India to desist from using TAR. The CTA and Tibetan Buddhists have been expecting India to greenlight the succession and reincarnation outlined by the Dalai Lama. India strategist and China expert Pravin Sawhney has said that the Dalai Lama has raked up sensitive issues for China, which could open a Pandora's box and even lead to war even as Delhi seems unable and unwilling to reset its Tibet policy. Jaishankar had told ANI last year, 'I don't want war with China; it has five times larger economy'. Tibetans outside and inside Tibet are likely to be disappointed by India's silence. Tsering says, 'India is our parent. We're nobody without India.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Calling His Holiness 'honoured guest and spiritual leader' is one thing; backing his succession plan is quite another. Given Tibet's geo-strategic vitality, Beijing squashing its autonomy, and blatantly violating its treaties and agreements with Delhi, India can and should have taken a more nuanced position on the succession issue. For starters, the Dalai Lama can be awarded the Bharat Ratna, which is supported by about 100 sitting MPs, and his birthday can be commemorated during the monsoon session of Parliament. The Tibet issue was raised as a Private Member's Bill earlier by Sujeet Kumar, a member of the Biju Janata Dal, who was requested to withdraw it. The 'thorn' has existed since 1962; still, India has been lured into normalising relations with just 'cosmetic disengagement' not vacation of encroachment by China. Jaishankar said in 2024, '[It is] impossible to normalise ties without the situation at the border being resolved, including demobilisation of troops that amassed there in 2020.' China is unlikely to de-escalate, but we keep talking like it does over the boundary question without settling the issue. India is displaying extraordinary strategic patience with China. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The author is former GOC IPKF South Sri Lanka and founder member Defence Planning Staff, now Integrated Defence Staff, Ministry of Defence. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views.
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Tibetan festival marking 90th birthday of the Dalai Lama commences in Mysuru
The four Tibetan settlements in Mysuru-Chamarajanagar districts inaugurated a two-day cultural festival in the city on Saturday to mark the 'Year of Compassion', which commemorates the 90th birthday of the Dalai Lama. This is in tune with the directive from the Central Tibetan Administration which has declared the period from July 6, 2025 to July 6, 2026, as the 'Year of Compassion', marking the 90th birthday of the 14th Dalai Lama. The event is being held at Kalamandira, and the organisers said that this is meaningful to the Tibetans as the 80th and the 90th birthdays of the Dalai Lama hold great spiritual and cultural significance, and is referred to in Tibetan as 'Gyaton' and 'Ghoton' respectively. The Tibetan settlements organising the event are Lugsung Samdupling and Dekyi Larso in Bylakuppe, Rabgayling in Hunsur, and Dhondenling in Kollegal, all of which are under the Central Tibetan Administration. 'This event reflects the collective effort of the local level administration of the Tibetan community in India to honour the 'Year of Compassion', and to celebrate the life and values of the Dalai Lama,' said the organisers. As part of the programme, there will be inspirational talks and exhibitions on the life and teachings of the Dalai Lama, display of Buddhist art, rituals, and traditional Tibetan cuisines, apart from Tibetan cultural performances, according to the organisers. The programme intends to spread the enduring message of compassion and resilience propounded by the Dalai Lama, they added. The Tibetan monks also expressed their gratitude to the Government of India and the Government of Karnataka, and recalled the contribution of late S. Nijalingappa, the then Chief Minister of what was Mysore State, who offered land for Tibetan rehabilitation in the 1960s.
News18
17-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
Dalai Lama Flashpoint Is Part Of ‘Managed Rivalry', Won't Derail India-China Relations
The Dalai Lama's blunt announcement about continuing with the tradition of reincarnations without letting China meddle in it will spike tensions temporarily, but not break ties India and China's relations make for the most heated headlines. With a war in the past and at least three violent skirmishes in the last 10 years, the two nations seldom create good news. But behind closed doors, top officials both in India and China have lately started saying something unusual. They say the tiger-dragon relations have never been as good as they are now. This makes one believe that the Dalai Lama's blunt announcement about continuing with the tradition of reincarnations without letting China meddle in it will spike tensions temporarily, but not break ties. The Dalai Lama said in his speech: 'As far back as 1969, I made clear that concerned people should decide whether the Dalai Lama's reincarnations should continue in the future. I also said, when I am about ninety, I will consult the high Lamas of the Tibetan Buddhist traditions, the Tibetan public, and other concerned people who follow Tibetan Buddhism, to re-evaluate whether or not the institution of the Dalai Lama should continue. Over the last 14 years leaders of Tibet's spiritual traditions, members of the Tibetan Parliament in Exile, participants in a Special General Body Meeting, members of the Central Tibetan Administration, NGOs, Buddhists from the Himalayan region, Mongolia, Buddhist republics of the Russian Federation and Buddhists in Asia including mainland China, have written to me with reasons, earnestly requesting that the institution of the Dalai Lama continue. In particular, I have received messages through various channels from Tibetans in Tibet making the same appeal. In accordance with all these requests, I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue." Some think this could make things go ballistic. But it most likely will not shake up relations. Rising trade, growing diplomatic cooperation, and a world thrown into uncertainty but the US President's mercurial diplomacy will keep India and China invested in each other. Undoubtedly, China will keep using Pakistan (and possibly Bangladesh) as irritants against India and try to destabilise it internally by funding and weaponising dissent. India will also firmly stand by the Tibetan spiritual leadership in exile, make friends with China's enemies in the neighbourhood, and push the Quad agenda. But it would be done within the limits of what Soumya Bhowmick describes in his ORF Foundation piece as a 'managed rivalry'. India's evolving engagement with China reflects a strategy of managed rivalry—balancing selective cooperation with strategic hedging. Rather than decoupling, India is recalibrating its economic and diplomatic posture by diversifying partnerships, securing resilient supply chains, and reducing dependence on China, especially as Beijing deepens ties with Pakistan. This marks a shift from reactive diplomacy to a tactically layered approach, where competition is contained without collapsing ties. The growing trade between the two nations is perhaps the most robust bulwark against direct conflict. In the first quarter of 2025, India and China's bilateral trade swelled to $136 billion, marking a 9.2 per cent year-on-year growth. Although this trade is heavily skewed in favour of China, Beijing remains New Delhi's second-largest trading partner, with the US at number one. At the CNN-News 18 Rising Bharat Summit 2025, foreign minister S Jaishankar said India and China were discussing collateral issues related to Covid-19, direct flights, and the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra. The India-China border agreement on October 21, 2024, led to the first meeting since 2019 between Indian PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit. Military disengagement in Ladakh, regular dialogue on border management, and the rebuilding of bilateral ties followed. Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in November 2024 and discussed resuming talks of a religious pilgrimage in Tibet, data sharing on trans-border rivers, direct flights between India and China, and media exchanges. The two defence ministers, Rajnath Singh and Admiral Dong Jun, also met in November 2024. In December, NSA Ajit Doval met Wang for border talks. Then came foreign secretary Vikram Misri's Beijing visit in January 2025. India wants to move relations to a 'more stable and predictable path', while Beijing has called for the need to be 'partners rather than rivals'. The vagaries of a Trump-ian world—tariff wars and unpredictable diplomacy over international conflicts—is another reason to deepen ties with each other instead of scuttling what exists. Which is why the two nations will most likely cross the river of bile over the Dalai Lama episode and safely reach solid ground soon. First Published: July 02, 2025, 15:09 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Japan Forward
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Japan Forward
In Next Dalai Lama Search, China Should Keep Its Nose Out
このページを 日本語 で読む The 14th Dalai Lama, the supreme leader of Tibetan Buddhism, has declared that his successor will be selected by the traditional method. That means, after his death, a search will be conducted by Tibetans themselves to identify his "reincarnation." Only the person they identify will become the 15th Dalai Lama. "They should accordingly carry out the procedures of search and recognition in accordance with past tradition.... No one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter," the Dalai Lama said. This statement amounted to a stern declaration to the Chinese communist authorities not to interfere in the process. The People's Republic of China has already announced a policy of not recognizing anyone other than its own candidate to become the 15th Dalai Lama. However, there is no way that the Tibetan people will look up to an illegitimate "imposter Dalai Lama." Beijing should end its inhumane, forced assimilation policies and respect Tibetan religion and culture. The 14th Dalai Lama turned 90 on July 6. At the age of two, he was recognized by the Tibetan government at the time as the reincarnation of the 13th Dalai Lama. He was formally installed in that position in 1940, at the age of four. Chinese police patrol in front of the Potala Palace in Tibet's capital Lhasa in a file photo. (Radio Free Asia via Central Tibetan Administration) However, the People's Liberation Army occupied Tibet in 1951, and the resistance efforts in various places were harshly suppressed. As a result, the 14th Dalai Lama fled Tibet's ancient capital of Lhasa in 1959. He thereafter established a government in exile in Dharamsala in northern India. The year 2025 marks 60 years since China established the Tibet Autonomous Region with Lhasa as its capital in 1965. Ever since, Beijing has encouraged large numbers of Han Chinese to migrate to the region. It has also implemented an assimilation policy designed to strip Tibet of its unique culture and religion. As a result, portraits and photographs of the 14th Dalai Lama have been removed from Buddhist temples and other buildings and replaced by images of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Government security personnel are regularly stationed at temples in Tibet, and numerous surveillance cameras have been installed in their precincts. In effect, the Tibetan people are forced to practice their faith under smothering controls amidst a pervasive atmosphere of fear. Followers of Tibetan Buddhism believe the Dalai Lama to be an incarnation of the Bodhisattva Kannon. But he is more than just a religious leader. Since the 17th century, the Dalai Lama has also led the Tibetan government. As its highest authority, he has also been a figure uniting religion and the state. Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, exchanges greetings with former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in June 2023 (©REUTERS) Regardless of the prohibitions issued by the Chinese government, ordinary Tibetans continue to display portraits and photographs of the Dalai Lama in their homes. China should not turn a blind eye to the reality that the Dalai Lama continues to be a pillar of spiritual support for the Tibetan people. Ever since he began his self-exile, the 14th Dalai Lama has consistently maintained a non-violent stance. Meanwhile, he has also spread awareness of the reality of Chinese oppression to the world. In 1989, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his contributions to world peace, religion, and culture. Regarding this latest statement on reincarnation, the international community, including Japan, should support the position of the 14th Dalai Lama. It must not accept Chinese intervention in a purely Tibetan matter. Author: Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun このページを 日本語 で読む
India Gazette
09-07-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
Tibetan Associations of New York declare July 6 as '14th Dalai Lama Day' during 90th birthday celebration
New York [US], July 9 (ANI): The Tibetan Associations of New York and New Jersey held a two-day celebration marking the 90th birthday of the 14th Dalai Lama on July 5 and 6, with the main event taking place at Phuntsok Deshi Hall on July 6, as reported by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). The event was graced by chief guest Kyabje Kundeling Rinpoche, with Choekhor Rinpoche and Kunga Tashi, the Tibetan Liaison Officer at the Office of Tibet, as special guests. In his keynote address, Kyabje Kundeling Rinpoche paid tribute to the Dalai Lama's decades of leadership in promoting nonviolence, compassion, and global harmony. Choekhor Rinpoche and Kunga Tashi also offered greetings and read the official statement of the Kashag on the occasion, according to the CTA. Among the distinguished guests were former judges, ex-staff of the Central Tibetan Administration, and former officials from the Government of India, as well as representatives of religious institutions. Samdup Tsering, President of the Tibetan Association, also addressed the gathering. A highlight of the event was the historic attendance of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who joined a Tibetan community celebration for the first time. In his speech, Mayor Adams praised the 14th Dalai Lama's unwavering commitment to global peace and spiritual values. He declared July 6 as '14th Dalai Lama Day' in New York City, a gesture warmly received by the Tibetan community. Additionally, he announced that the city would officially recognise the Tibetan Green Book (Chatrel), a voluntary contribution system supporting the CTA, affirming the community's identity and governance in exile, as reported by the CTA. The celebration concluded with colourful performances of traditional Tibetan songs and dances, reflecting the rich cultural heritage preserved in exile. Similar celebrations took place across global Tibetan communities, reflecting deep reverence for the Dalai Lama's legacy. The 14th Dalai Lama has lived in exile in India since 1959 after fleeing Tibet due to Chinese occupation. His teachings on compassion, peace, and religious freedom continue to inspire millions worldwide, the CTA noted. (ANI)
