Two events in India in July 2025 generated more political heat for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) than the peak of the Indian summer. One was Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu’s visit to Dharamsala for the 90th birthday celebrations of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and the other was the Dalai Lama’s visit to Ladakh.

“Our border is with Tibet, not China... China, in its current form, only emerged after the communist revolution. There was no historical or cultural connection between Arunachal Pradesh and China. Before the Chinese occupation of Tibet in the 1950s, the people of Arunachal Pradesh had spiritual, cultural, and trade relations with the Tibetan people. Our ties are ancient... None of the Indian states directly share borders with China; we share borders with Tibet only.”

Pointed statement

This bold statement by CM Khandu, made during the Ghoton celebrations marking the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday in Dharamsala on July 6, 2025, was seen as a direct challenge to Beijing's narrative, which could not have been done without a tacit nod from New Delhi. 

Accompanied by Indian Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, a senior minister in the Narendra Modi government, the Arunachal CM later met Secretary Palden Dhondup of the Department of Home, Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), along with his protocol team, to discuss the welfare and development of Tibetan settlements in Arunachal Pradesh. Secretary Dhondup expressed heartfelt appreciation for the state's longstanding and generous support to the Tibetan community.

In a media interview, Khandu strongly refuted Beijing’s territorial claims and emphasized Arunachal’s historical relationship with Tibet, a nation forcibly occupied by China in the 1950s. He pointed out that Arunachal Pradesh shares roughly 1,200 km of border with Tibet, around 100 km with Bhutan, and 550 km with Myanmar. His remarks were a pointed rebuttal to China’s repeated claims over Arunachal Pradesh, including renaming it as “Zangnan” or “South Tibet.” These claims have often been accompanied by cartographic aggression—renaming towns, rivers, and geographical features in Mandarin. “Changing names does not alter facts,” Khandu stated. “Renaming our places in their language will not rewrite history or change ground realities.”

Khandu represents the Tawang constituency, home to many revered Tibetan Buddhist monasteries. It was here in 1951 that Major Ralengnao "Bob" Khating of the Assam Regiment arrived on an expedition. Receiving a warm response from village elders—who expressed a preference for joining India over China—he hoisted the Indian tricolour, bringing the region under Indian administration.

The Arunachal CM also expressed serious concern over China’s massive dam project on the Yarlung Tsangpo River—called the Brahmaputra after it enters India. The hydropower project, located near the Great Bend in Tibet’s Medog County, close to the Arunachal border, has been criticized for its opacity and potential environmental risks. Referring to the dam as a “ticking water bomb,” Khandu warned, “If the dam collapses due to a natural disaster, or if water is released without prior notice, it could have devastating consequences for Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. We are dealing with a serious risk to the lives and livelihoods of people downstream.”

Sensitive issue

Addressing the sensitive issue of the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, which Beijing seeks to control, Khandu rejected China’s claim to spiritual authority, stating unequivocally that the Chinese government has no role to play. “The next Dalai Lama will be born in a free world,” he declared. “This is a spiritual decision rooted in Tibetan Buddhist traditions—not one for a political regime to dictate.”

In what must have further angered Beijing, which naturally protested the remarks, Khandu went further by urging the Indian government to confer the Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian honour, on the Dalai Lama. “The Dalai Lama is a global symbol of peace and compassion. He has contributed immensely not just to the Tibetan cause but also to India and to humanity. He truly deserves the Bharat Ratna.”

Visit to Ladakh

On July 12, 2025, the Dalai Lama flew directly from Dharamsala to Leh, Ladakh, in an Indian Air Force aircraft. Upon arrival, he was warmly received by Ven. Thiksey Rinpoche, Ven. Thuksey Rinpoche, the Chief Executive Councillor of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council Tashi Gyalson, President of the Ladakh Buddhist Association Dawa Tashi, President of the Ladakh Gompa Association Ven. Dorjé Stanzin, representatives of the Muslim and Christian communities, the Director General of Ladakh Police, the Deputy Commissioner of Leh, and the Superintendent of Police.

The Dalai Lama’s motorcade made its way to his residence at Shewatsel in Leh. Along the nine-kilometre route, jubilant crowds of Ladakhis and Tibetans lined the roads. Jeeploads of costumed dancers and monk musicians led the procession. In many areas, the crowds were several rows deep—carrying flowers, incense, and ceremonial scarves. Some held umbrellas against the blazing sun, while many sang and danced. Students from Muslim schools also greeted the Dalai Lama, and a surprising number of young people were seen shedding tears of joy.

At Shewatsel Phodrang, his official residence in Leh, His Holiness was welcomed by chanting monks and nuns, with the sound of horns, drums, and cymbals filling the air. Traditional Ladakhi drummers beat a resonant welcome as he stepped out of the vehicle. Inside the hall, monastics sat to his right and laypeople to his left as he addressed the gathering.

“The Buddhism we practise in Tibet is scientific and practical in terms of meditation. It can withstand rigorous scrutiny, just as gold is tested by burning, cutting, and polishing.

Scientists don’t talk about past or future lives or liberation, but they recognize that those who practise Tibetan Buddhism remain calm. Their minds are less affected by destructive emotions. If you practise it sincerely, you will be calm and interact with others in a kind, affectionate way.

I have found Tibetan Buddhism very useful in my own life. Many of my friends, including scientists, acknowledge the value of our traditions.”

Rage in Beijing

Indian troops have not fired on their Chinese counterparts since the 1967 skirmishes in Sikkim, when over 400 Chinese troops were killed. After that, the CCP pushed strongly for a no-firing agreement—an accord China has since exploited through “salami slicing” tactics to incrementally encroach on Indian territory. India, while vocally objecting, has largely refrained from matching such aggressions. However, the rage these two recent events have provoked in Beijing—as reflected in the Chinese foreign ministry’s protests and Chinese state media commentaries—suggests that India’s Tibet card has been played with subtle but striking effect.

For a long time, India hesitated to invoke the Tibet issue as strategic leverage. But with these two events, it seems to have done so, timed particularly ahead of Indian External Affairs MInister S Jaishankar's visit to China for the first time since the bloody Ladakh skirmishes of 2020.

(The author is a strategic affairs analyst and former spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence and the Indian Army. Views expressed are personal. He can be reached at  wordsword02@gmail.com | LinkedIn | X/Twitter: @ColAnilBhat8252 )