As the 14th Dalai Lama turned 90 on July 6, the world wasn’t just marking the birthday of a spiritual icon—it was confronting a geopolitical storm stretching from the icy plateaus of Tibet to Washington’s power corridors and China’s shadowy religious schemes. His advancing age raises a pivotal question: Who will control the soul of Tibet—its exiled spiritual legacy or its communist occupier?

The Dalai Lama has firmly shut Beijing out of the succession process, stating, “I am clear that my next incarnation will emerge in a nation that upholds freedom—not under Chinese dominion.”

India, which has hosted the Tibetan government in exile and given refuge to the Dalai Lama since 1959, now stands at a historical inflection point. As Beijing prepares to hijack the reincarnation process to install a compliant “Dalai Lama”, the world must decide whether it will defend faith or appease power.

This is no theological debate. It’s a test of global conscience—pitting China's authoritarian reach against Tibetan religious freedom and India's moral obligation against its geopolitical caution.

Reflecting on my meeting with the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala during my Shimla posting in the mid-1980s, I can attest to his deep commitment to democracy. He voluntarily relinquished his role as the political head of Tibet’s exiled government to pave the way for elected leadership—an act rare among global religious figures.

Washington leads, New Delhi wavers: The United States has taken an unambiguous stand about the Dalai Lama’s successor. The Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA) of 2020, passed with bipartisan support in Congress, declares that the decision regarding the Dalai Lama’s........

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