16. Sep 2009
India rejects Beijing's opposition to Tawang visit
(Bloomberg; IANS) Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna has rejected China's opposition to the Dalai Lama visiting northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. The Dalai Lama will inaugurate a hospital in Tawang, the capital of the state. In an interview, Krishna claimed China's objection, voiced by its foreign ministry, "has no merit". Arunachal Pradesh, he said, "is a part of India and the Dalai Lama is free to go anywhere in India. The only question is that he is not expected to comment on political developments". The Dalai Lama is expected to visit Arunachal sometime in November, a territory which Beijing claims as its own and over which it has been lately renewing its claims. Speaking to a group of visiting journalists in Dharamsala, Prime Minister of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche reportedly described Beijing's objections to the Dalai Lama's visit as "absurd".