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Govt does not take position on matters of religion: MEA on Dalai Lama's successor
The MEA's response comes two days after the Dalai Lama said that a trust of Tibetan Buddhists will have the sole authority to recognise his future reincarnation
The Indian government does not take any position on matters concerning practices of faith and religion, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Friday.
The MEA's response comes two days after the Dalai Lama said that a trust of Tibetan Buddhists will have the sole authority to recognise his future reincarnation.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the government has always upheld freedom of religion for all in India and will continue to do so.
"We have seen reports relating to the statement made by His Holiness the Dalai Lama about the continuation of the Dalai Lama institution," the MEA statement said.
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“Government of India does not take any position or speak on matters concerning beliefs and practices of faith and religion. Government has always upheld freedom of religion for all in India and will continue to do so,” it added.
The MEA's remark comes soon after Union Minister Kiren Rijiju asserted that the choice of the Dalai Lama's successor should rest solely with the spiritual leader himself.
"I am a devotee of the Dalai Lama. Anybody in the world who follows the Dalai Lama wants his successor to be chosen by the Dalai Lama himself," Rijiju said.
“There is no need for us to be in confusion regarding the Dalai Lama issue. All the people who follow Buddhism as their religion and his followers think that the Dalai Lama should choose his successor on his own. There is no need for us or the Government of India to speak on this,” he added.
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He also said that he, along with JDU's Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu and Sikkim CM Prem Singh Tamang, will attend the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday celebrations in Dharamshala on July 6.
On July 2, Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of the Tibetans, said that the institution of Dalai Lama will continue even after his death and no one else has the authority to decide on the matter. He further said that the next Dalai Lama will be chosen outside of China.
