Dharamshala, India — National Vice President of BJP, former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and the current member of the legislative assembly of the State, Shivraj Singh Chouhan met Dr Lobsang Sangay, the President of Central Tibetan Administration at the Kashag Secretariat in Dharamshala, India.
Shri Kishan Kapoor, Member of Parliament of Lok Sabha from Kangra constituency and other dignitaries from the state government were also present in the meeting.
Their meeting focused on various issues related to Tibet and the long-standing historical relationship between India and Tibet. While welcoming the delegation, Dr Lobsang Sangay along with the cabinet ministers offered gratitude to the Indian government and the state leaders for hosting and supporting the Tibetan people.
The meeting with the distinguished guests took place at the Kashag secretariat auditorium, in Dharamshala, India, on August 20, 2019. The Tibetan President informed them about the current situation inside Tibet and urged the BJP leader to continue his support for the Tibetan cause.
The senior BJP leader also met with Pema Jugney, the Speaker of Tibetan Parliament in Exile at the parliament building where the Speaker greeted them and introduced on Tibetan democracy in exile and explained about the map of Tibet, hanging from the middle of the wall of the Assembly Hall of the Parliament.
Speaking to reporters on the same day, Chouhan told that it is the blessings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s teachings that has converted Dharamshala into a landmark for peace and compassion. He even acknowledged that the Indians consider the Tibetans as a part of the family and they will always stand by Tibet.
After the meeting with the Tibetan leaders, the senior BJP leader also tweeted about the visit and wrote, "Delighted to have met Hon Prime Minister of Tibet Shri Lobsang Sangay."
"People of Tibet are truly humble and grateful. May be peace and harmony prevail amongst mankind as per the teachings of H.H Shri Dalai Lama," Shri Chouhan further wrote.
According to his office, Chouhan also said that during his tenure in Madhya Pradesh, he set up the Anand department in order to achieve human perfection, how to achieve enlightenment.
The Communist totalitarian regime of China began their invasion of Tibet in 1949, reaching complete occupation of the country in 1959. Since that time, more than 1.2 million people, 20% of the nation's population of six million, have died as a direct result of China's invasion and occupation. In addition, over 99% of Tibet's six thousand religious monasteries, temples, and shrines, have been looted or decimated resulting in the destruction of hundreds of thousands of sacred Buddhist scriptures.
Until 1949, Tibet was an independent Buddhist nation in the Himalayas which had little contact with the rest of the world. It existed as a rich cultural storehouse of the Mahayana and Vajrayana teachings of Buddhism. Religion was a unifying theme among the Tibetans -- as was their own language, literature, art, and world view developed by living at high altitudes, under harsh conditions, in a balance with their environment.
