Dalai Lama resignation rejected

The Assembly of Tibetan Peoples Deputies, also known as Tibetan Parliament in exile, on Friday passed a voice resolution requesting the Dalai Lama to reconsider his decision to relinquish his powers. Gaurav Bisht reports.

The Assembly of Tibetan Peoples Deputies, also known as Tibetan Parliament in exile, on Friday passed a voice resolution requesting the Dalai Lama to reconsider his decision to relinquish his powers.

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After holding deliberations for four days, the Tibetan parliament has concluded the relationship of 400 years between the Dalai Lama, the 14th reincarnation of the Tenzing Gyatso, and the Tibetan people is “immortal”.

The parliament speaker on Wednesday had formed three committees comprising 12 parliamentarians each to find middle ground as regards the Dalai Lama’s proposal to give up his political role in the Tibetan government-in-exile.

The three committees on Friday gave their recommendations to bring a resolution in the house asking the Dalai Lama not to give up his political role. However, they recommended reducing Dalai Lama’s administrative responsibilities.

The parliamentarians said the Dalai Lama should stay as leader of the Tibetan movement.

On Monday the Dalai Lama, 75, in a statement formally asked the Tibetan parliament-in-exile to amend its charter to relieve him of his current role.

“My intention to devolve political authority derives (not) from a wish to shirk responsibility,” the statement said.

The Tibetans consider the Dalai Lama God King. For the past 67 years, the Dalai Lama, since he assumed political responsibility for Tibet, has been both the temporal and the spiritual leader of Tibetans.

He is the only global face of the Tibetan struggle ever since he was exiled after the Chinese troops marched into Lhasa in 1959.