DHARAMSALA: Nobel peace prize winner the Dalai Lama, has decided to shift his headquarters from the hill- town of Dharamsala. But the Himachal Pradesh chief minister presumably at Indian government’s instance has advised him not to think of leaving Dharmsala. In all probability, the spinal and temporary head of the Tibetans will move his base to the outskirts of Bangalore. This decision follows the spate of violence, arson and looting which the Tibetan community in Dharamsala has been subjected to in the last fortnight.

The Dalai Lama made his decision known when the former BJP chief minister, Shanta Kumar, visited him. at his residence, Shanta Kumar had gone to apologize for the violence which followed the death of a gaddi youth at the hands of a Tibetan. The movement against the Tibetans has, much to the embarrassment of the BJP been spear headed by the party’s local MLA, Krishen Kapoor..

Later, in an exclusive interview, the Dalai Lama expressed his deep hurtat the manner in which the Tibetans had been stonewalled by sections of the local community. “I am very, very sad that an individual incident has, unfortunately, been allowed to be manipulated by local politicians and this makes it very serious,” he said. “Perhaps in a small town, the presence of a few thousand Tibetans is conspicuous. My presence here and that of the central administration, too, makes the Tibetans here stand out. To avoid a conflict becoming a major problem in the future, it is best that I move out of Dharamsala,” he said. Expressing his deep gratitude to the Indian government for providing ref uge to almost 100,000 Tibetans (of which 6,000 live in Dharamsala, over 35,000 have been settled in South India), the Dalai Lama, however, clarified that he did not chose Dharamsala as his base. “It was at the insistence of the government of India in 1960, when. I was informed that Missouri was only a temporary arrangement, that I shifted to Dharamsala with reluctance, I have always been in favor of being closer to Delhi,” he said.

He added that on every subsequent occasion when he had attempted to move out of Dharamsala – to Simla in the 60’s and later in 1988 when his community felt that earthquake prone Dharamsala was unsafe for him- the local community had appealed to him not to shift his residence. “But this time I have been faced with a human earthquake-I think the time has come for me to move and, if possible, I will move to Bangalore, he said. The decision of the Dalai Lama has taken the local Tibetan community, and his government-in-exile, by shock. For many, this has been their only home since their fight from Tibet. almost 35 years ago. But, as the elderly Mrs Kunga whose shop was looted and attacked by an unruly mob, points out, “I have never felt more intimidated nose.” not even by the Chi

The situation in the hill-resort has remained tense. While there has been no fresh spate of violence against the Tibetans, every new day witnesses a fresh turn to the current impasse. Just recently, Dharamsala awoke to pamphlets strewn all over the Tibetan dominated McLeod Gunj area.

Article extracted from this publication >> May 13, 1994