If we end up with two Dalai Lamas India should not endorse either of them: former Foreign Secretary, Nirupama Rao, to Karan Thapar, for The Wire. .......................................... In an interview to discuss the Dalai Lama succession and the implications for India, including, most importantly, it’s relationship with China, Nirupama Rao, a former Foreign Secretary, has said that if we end up with two Dalai Lamas India should not endorse either of them. She said: “India should continue hosting the Tibetan tradition without formally recognizing one Dalai Lama selected by China over the other chosen by the Tibetan people here in India. This isn’t about taking sides … the intention is to avoid escalation and confrontation.” However, in a 25-minute interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, Rao, who is also a former Ambassador to China and America, accepted that if we do end up with two Dalai Lamas, one chosen by Beijing and the other by the present Dalai Lama’s Gaden Phodrang Trust, it’s likely to create tensions between India and China. I will stop there. There’s a lot more in this interview that you will discover when you watch it. Rao talks about contradictions in the Chinese position on how the Dalai Lama should be chosen. She also talks about tensions that could appear between Washington D.C. and Beijing over this issue. Towards the end of the interview, Rao speaks at length about the close relationship between India and what she calls the Tibetan tradition. India should see itself as “the custodian of the flame of the Tibetan tradition”. She said: “If, as expected, the next Dalai Lama is born in India, the country will become more than host – it will become the caretaker of the lineage. The young reincarnate’s education, his monastic training, his symbolic authority – all of it will unfold on Indian soil. India may say little. It may issue no declarations. But it will be, in every meaningful sense, the ground on which the Tibetan tradition stakes its future.” To help you, I give below the main questions asked of Rao. Here they are:- 1) The Dalai Lama has said that his successor will be a reincarnation, born outside China and identified by the Gaden Phodrang Trust set up by him. Is this as close to the traditional Tibetan way of choosing the Dalai Lama as present-day circumstances permit? 2) On the other hand, China has said that the next Dalai Lama must be approved by the Beijing government and is likely to be chosen through the “Golden Urn” process, dating back to the Qing Dynasty. That’s an anathema to the Tibetan people. So, do we have the potential of a pretty serious clash between Beijing and Dharamshala? 3) China is a Communist country which, presumably, views Buddhism or any religion as an opium. Yet they want the deciding role in choosing the next Dalai Lama, and that’s a religious function. Isn’t there a contradiction here? 4) In 1995 Beijing replaced the Panchen Lama chosen in the traditional way with their own preference but he’s never been accepted by the Tibetan people. Won’t that also be the case with whoever the Chinese choose as the next Dalai Lama? 5) Now the United States in 2020 passed the Tibet Policy and Support Act which imposes sanctions on any Chinese officials that interfere in the process of selecting the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan leaders. If America adheres to this, won’t we have serious differences between Washington and Beijing? Join The Wire's Youtube Membership and get exclusive content, member-only emojis, live interaction with The Wire's founders, editors and reporters and much more. Memberships to The Wire Crew start at Rs 89/month. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChWtJey46brNr7qHQpN6KLQ/join