Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said the established institution and the Dalai Lama alone should decide on the Tibetan spiritual leader’s succession, a day after China said that his reincarnation must have its approval.
The Chinese response followed the Dalai Lama’s announcement on Wednesday about the continuation of the 600-year-old institution of the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists after his death. The Dalai Lama said a trust he created will be the sole authority to recognise his reincarnation, effectively shutting out any Chinese role in choosing his successor.
Rijiju said the institution of the Dalai Lama is the most important and defining institution for Tibetans, not just in Tibet but across the world. “And all those who follow the Dalai Lama feel that the Incarnation is to be decided by the established convention and as per the wish of the Dalai Lama himself… Nobody else has the right to decide it except him and the conventions in place,” Rijiju said.
Rijiju, a Buddhist, and his Cabinet colleague, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, will represent the government at the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday celebrations in Dharamshala on July 6. In 2011, the Dalai Lama said he would decide on his 90th birthday whether the position should continue. Rijiju insisted that the Indian government deputing two ministers for the birthday celebrations is not a political issue.
{{/usCountry}}Rijiju, a Buddhist, and his Cabinet colleague, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, will represent the government at the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday celebrations in Dharamshala on July 6. In 2011, the Dalai Lama said he would decide on his 90th birthday whether the position should continue. Rijiju insisted that the Indian government deputing two ministers for the birthday celebrations is not a political issue.
{{/usCountry}}India has said that the process of naming the successor is part of a long-standing tradition that the Dalai Lama undertakes, and no third party has a role to play. China has asserted that the successor will require its approval. A person aware of the matter said if China does not agree with the Dalai Lama’s choice, India too will not recognise their appointee.