by Chime Tenzing
Dharamsala, October 1 – In the run up to the Dalai Lama’s visit to the contentious Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh in November, S.M Krishna, External Affairs Minister of India, reiterated India’s stance on His Holiness’ upcoming visit to the Arunachal state by categorically saying that “as a spiritual guru he can preach but he should not talk about China and politics”, during his one-on-one interview with the NDTV 24×7, a premiere English News channel of India, last night. He further added “Arunachal is an Indian territory and the Dalai Lama is free to go anywhere in India”. It was obvious from the Minister’s admission that the Dalai Lama had always ‘lived up to the expectations’ of the Indian government in the past on sensitive Sino-Indian issues.
The state of Arunachal Pradesh had been a part of Indian territory but after the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959 the state had become a bone of contention between the two Asian neighbors.Tawang in Arunachal is home to one of the most sacred Buddhist monasteries. The Dalai Lama passed through this region when he fled into exile from Tibet in 1959. The sixth Dalai Lama was also born in Tawang in 1697. The state shares the border with the Chinese occupied Tibet. Because of this geographical proximity and historical link with the previous the Dalai Lama, China claims it to be a part of their territory.
In the past, several attempts from both sides to reach an amicable solution had failed. China still claims the state to be part of their territory and even made several clandestine attempts to intrude the borders, one in recent times. However, India has decided to overlook recent reports on frequent and provocative Chinese border intrusions from across occupied Tibet, especially into Arunachal and Ladakh, as mere ‘pinpricks’ rather than being intended at any confrontation with India.
But the Dalai Lama’s upcoming visit to the state will be closely monitored from both the sides. It is obvious that His Holiness’ visit to the state will garner a political angle to it because his visit will reaffirm India’s position on the state. Therefore, this time his visit to the state will naturally spark a political flame between the two Asian giants.
