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First Post
4 hours ago
- Politics
- First Post
How India should approach Dalai Lama's succession issue
India is displaying extraordinary strategic patience with China, the CTA and Tibetan Buddhists have been expecting India to greenlight the succession and reincarnation outlined by the Dalai Lama read more After a weeklong celebration of his 90th birthday, His Holiness the Dalai Lama is in Leh preaching and relaxing. Did India miss an opportunity to test, if not reset, its Tibet policy over the succession of the Dalai Lama? Ahead of Foreign Minister S Jaishankar's first visit to China after the Galwan clashes and pro forma normalisation of bilateral relations, China noted that 'Tibet-related issues, including the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, are a thorn in India-China relations.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Beijing's pincer attacks came in quick barrages from its embassy in Delhi and the Foreign Ministry in Beijing before and after the Dalai Lama's 90th birthday, ignoring Tibet's history, religion, and traditions and letting its invasion and occupation of Tibet in 1950 do the speaking. India's silence is due to China's military and economic power and Delhi's constraint to reset its Tibet policy. This has allowed Beijing to salami slice in East Ladakh, freeze progress on border settlement, and act adversarially during Op Sindoor. The Sikyong (President) of the Central Tibetan Administration (Government in Exile), Penpa Tsering, had offered ideas on succession last year. On 2 July, in a recorded video statement, His Holiness Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso said that the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the offices of the Dalai Lama, and the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) will search and find his successor, which Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiran Rijiju endorsed: 'No one has the right to interfere or decide who the successor will be; only he or his institution has the authority to make the decision.' China immediately protested Rijiju's statement, warning India against interfering in its internal affairs at the expense of bilateral relations. Delhi did not push the matter further. India's Foreign Ministry said, 'India does not take any position or speak on matters concerning faith and religion but will continue to uphold freedom of religion.' Rijiju also clarified he was echoing feelings of Tibetans, speaking for himself and not the government. It is India's moral and cultural right and responsibility to prevent China from usurping Tibetan Buddhism from its homeland. On 6 July, his birthday, the Dalai Lama said he would reincarnate in a free country and live to be 130 years old, adding his reincarnation could be found in Ladakh, Dharamsala, or Arunachal Pradesh. Prime Minister Modi congratulated the Dalai Lama on his birthday. China protested against PM Modi's greetings, fired volleys at the US for endorsing the Dalai Lama, and issued its own interpretation of succession, asserting China's prerogative to anoint the 15th Dalai Lama. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The problem in reincarnation is the longevity of regency when leadership may be exercised by the Sikyong, CTA, or a Council of Elders. Secondly, long overdue is a reset in India's Tibet and One China policy. India accepted Tibet as part of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 2003 for China accepting the international border in Sikkim. Neither the delineation of the LAC nor the Political Framework for a Border Resolution 2005, which skips delineation, has materialised; but instead, China has been salami slicing in East Ladakh. Further, it never implemented autonomy (Dalai Lama's Middle Path) for Tibet but indulged in wholesale Sinicisation of Tibet (69 per cent of people in Tibet are non-Tibetan Buddhists). Delhi has many reasons to reconsider its Tibet policy. It cannot do so on its own and needs a willing strategic partner like the US. The US Tibet Policy Act (2002) was amended in 2020 to the Tibet Policy and Support Act, which is complemented by the Resolve Tibet Act (2024), which has several important issues, including reincarnation and Tibet not being the TAR (Tibet Autonomous Region) created in 1965. The CTA, which shifted from Lhasa to Dharamsala in 1959, will next year be releasing the new map of Tibet highlighting this cartographic fraud. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Next, the boundary issue. While Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Pema Khandu, who attended the Dalai Lama's birthday, has said that his state has a border with Tibet, not China, US Congressional legislation of 2020 has recognised the McMahon Line as the boundary between 'Arunachal Pradesh, which belongs to India, and China,' refuting Beijing's claim on South Tibet. Tsering and his predecessor, Lobsang Sangay, have consistently said Tibet, not China, has a border with India and recalled the name of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, advising India to desist from using TAR. The CTA and Tibetan Buddhists have been expecting India to greenlight the succession and reincarnation outlined by the Dalai Lama. India strategist and China expert Pravin Sawhney has said that the Dalai Lama has raked up sensitive issues for China, which could open a Pandora's box and even lead to war even as Delhi seems unable and unwilling to reset its Tibet policy. Jaishankar had told ANI last year, 'I don't want war with China; it has five times larger economy'. Tibetans outside and inside Tibet are likely to be disappointed by India's silence. Tsering says, 'India is our parent. We're nobody without India.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Calling His Holiness 'honoured guest and spiritual leader' is one thing; backing his succession plan is quite another. Given Tibet's geo-strategic vitality, Beijing squashing its autonomy, and blatantly violating its treaties and agreements with Delhi, India can and should have taken a more nuanced position on the succession issue. For starters, the Dalai Lama can be awarded the Bharat Ratna, which is supported by about 100 sitting MPs, and his birthday can be commemorated during the monsoon session of Parliament. The Tibet issue was raised as a Private Member's Bill earlier by Sujeet Kumar, a member of the Biju Janata Dal, who was requested to withdraw it. The 'thorn' has existed since 1962; still, India has been lured into normalising relations with just 'cosmetic disengagement' not vacation of encroachment by China. Jaishankar said in 2024, '[It is] impossible to normalise ties without the situation at the border being resolved, including demobilisation of troops that amassed there in 2020.' China is unlikely to de-escalate, but we keep talking like it does over the boundary question without settling the issue. India is displaying extraordinary strategic patience with China. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The author is former GOC IPKF South Sri Lanka and founder member Defence Planning Staff, now Integrated Defence Staff, Ministry of Defence. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views.
CBS News
15 hours ago
- Business
- CBS News
4 CTA Red Line stops reopen after rebuilding
Commuters on the CTA Red Line on Chicago's North Side had four shiny new stops available on Sunday. A ceremonial train busted through a banner Sunday morning at the Berwyn station, above Berwyn Avenue just east of Broadway in the Edgewater neighborhood, to celebrate the reopening. The Berwyn station has been closed as part of the Chicago Transit Authority Red and Purple Modernization Project since 2021. The Lawrence station, over Lawrence Avenue just east of Broadway, has also been closed altogether since 2021. Two other stops, the Bryn Mawr and Argyle stations — over Bryn Mawr Avenue and Argyle Street, and also just east of Broadway — had temporary stations open while being rebuilt. "There's a wider platform at each station. The concrete structure is going to allow for a smoother ride. They're fully accessible. There's elevators and escalators at all the station — accessible to everyone," said CTA senior communications representative Andrew Gavrilos. Gavrilos said the concrete structure is more wind and noise resistant, and there are also wider canopies at the top for weather protection. "Well worth the wait," Gavrilos said. The $2.1 billion Red and Purple Modernization Project has been replacing century-old tracks, signals, and platforms that had all reached the end of their service lives. At the Bryn Mawr station, a new entrance has also opened a block north at Hollywood Avenue. According to the Chicago - history site — which is not affiliated with the CTA, but was built by CTA historian and expert Graham Garfield, who now serves as the CTA's general manager for Red and Purple Modernization operations and communication coordination — the Berwyn stop was first constructed in 1916 as the Edgewater Beach station on the Northwestern Elevated Railroad. The station was renamed Berwyn, for Berwyn Avenue, in 1960, according to Berwyn Avenue in turn was named by developer and Edgewater community developer John L. Cochran, a Philadelphia native, for the Philadelphia Main Line suburban community of Berwyn. The west Chicago suburb of Berwyn, which Berwyn Avenue does not run anywhere near, was named for the same Philadelphia suburb by different developers. There has been a rapid transit station at Bryn Mawr Avenue, three blocks north of Berwyn Avenue, since 1908, according to Bryn Mawr is another Philadelphia Main Line suburb that got a street name in Chicago thanks to Cochran, according to the book Streetwise Chicago. The Argyle station — serving the Asia on Argyle district that was transformed in the 1970s by Vietnamese, Laotian, Cambodian, and Chinese entrepreneurs — also dates back to 1908, according to Published reports note that community leader Charlie Soo persuaded the CTA to take on a $250,000 renovation for the station in the 1980s, and a pagoda was added in 1991. The pagoda and an "Asia on Argyle" sign were removed for the reconstruction of the station, and the CTA said it is working with the local alderperson and the community to relocate both. The Lawrence station — serving such venues as the Aragon Ballroom, the Riviera Theater, and The Green Mill — came later, opening in 1923, according to
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
Chicago police seek 4 suspects in armed robbery at CTA station in River North
Mass Transit detectives are searching for four suspects they said robbed a passenger on a CTA platform in the River North neighborhood earlier this month. They said the suspects approached a passenger on an escalator on July 12, around 12:47 a.m., inside the CTA Red Line-Clybourn Station in the 1500 block of North Clybourn Avenue. They allegedly took the passenger's wallet, money, and hit him in the face. When the victim approached them to retrieve his property, one of them showed a gun. The first suspect was described as a Black man between 18 and 20 years old, standing between 5-feet-8 and 5-feet-11, weighing between 175 and 180 pounds, last seen wearing a black stocking hat, a black short-sleeved shirt, and black pants. The second suspect, a Black man between 18 and 20 years old, stands 5 feet 10 and 6 feet tall. He was last seen wearing a grey/green camouflage stocking hat, a black-colored hoodie with one camouflage sleeve, and light-colored ripped jeans. The third suspect is a Black male between 16 and 18 years of age, between 5-feet-7 and 5-feet-9. He was last seen wearing a black balaclava mask, a black T-shirt, and light-colored jeans with ripped knees. The fourth suspect was described as white/Hispanic, with long dark hair, last seen wearing a black t-shirt and light-colored jeans. Anyone with information is asked to contact 312-745-4447 or submit an anonymous tip at using reference JJ330530.
CBS News
3 days ago
- CBS News
2 men injured during fight that started on CTA train in Chicago's West Loop
Two men were injured during a fight that started on a CTA train in Chicago's West Loop early Friday morning. Chicago police said a 50-year-old man got into an argument with another man while riding the train in the 400 block of South Clinton Street just after 12:30 a.m. Police said the men got off the train, and the altercation became physical. The 50-year-old man struck the other man in the face with a sharp object, and he fought back. The man who was struck in the face was taken to Northwestern Hospital in serious condition. The 50-year-old was taken to Rush Hospital, where he was treated for a chin injury. Police did not confirm if any arrests were made. Area Detectives are investigating.
Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Renovated Red Line stations on North Side to reopen Sunday
Four Red Line stations across Uptown and Edgewater will reopen this weekend after years of construction. The four stations — Argyle, Bryn Mawr, Lawrence and Berwyn — were renovated as part of a $2.1 billion Red and Purple line modernization project paid for by a combination of grants, federal money, transit tax increment financing dollars and CTA funds. The CTA has operated temporary stations at Argyle and Bryn Mawr during the construction period, but the Lawrence and Berwyn stations have been shuttered for more than four years. The transit agency had previously estimated the new stations would open near the end of 2024. Tammy Chase, a CTA spokesperson, attributed the slightly tardy renovations to pandemic-related delays. The North Side stations, which the CTA has said are about a century old, have been equipped with escalators and elevators to make them accessible to passengers with disabilities. The renovations also included the construction of wider platforms and overhead canopies to protect riders from inclement weather. The modernization project has also included the construction of a Red-Purple bypass meant to unsnarl traffic near the busy Belmont station, the rebuilding of tracks between Belmont and West Cornelia Avenue and the installation of a new signal system between the Howard and Belmont stations. Trains will begin making stops at the new Red Line stations shortly after midnight Saturday, Chase said.
