By Tenzin Dharpo
DHARAMSHALA, Nov. 1: The Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama today inaugurated a book on Tibet written by Former Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh and senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party Shanta Kumar during a public event at the Theckchen Choeling Tsuklakhang temple here in McLeod Ganj.
The Tibetan leader launched three books; Red Shadows over Himalaya which is authored by Kumar, If Autumn comes by his wife Santosh Shailja and a book penned by Hemraj Kaushik on the life of the 82 years old veteran BJP politician. Kumar, who also served as a union minister in the NDA government, described the occasion as being “one of the proudest moments of my life”.
The Tibetan leader thanked Kumar for making him part of the occasion saying, “We made our acquaintance a long time ago when we were both young, now we’ve aged. Although ageing and dying are an integral parts of our human lives, what matters is having spent a meaningful life. Your political career through which you have had the opportunity to serve your people is admirable.”
The exiled Tibetan leader who has been living in Dharamshala since 1960 also expressed gratitude for the state of Himachal for its hospitality and giving him and his people the space to create a holistic community in exile.
The BJP leader also expressed appreciation to the Tibetan leader for launching the books and for being a champion of peace in the world. He said, “The spread of Buddhism and the message of peace in the world can be attributed to the tireless work of the Dalai Lama.”
The veteran politician who served two stints at the helm of the state opined that China which occupied Tibet is now joining hands with Pakistan which is a hotbed for terrorists. Recalling Nehru’s friendship slogan, Kumar also said that ‘Hindi Chini, bhai bhai (Indians and Chinese are brothers)’ is a delusional propaganda.
The function was also attended by cabinet ministers of the Central Tibetan Administration, Members of Parliament as well as local Indian dignitaries.
