Karmapa not to be allowed into Sikkim

By Harish Khare

NEW DELHI, JAN. 22. The Vajpayee Government is believed to have taken the first step towards finalising a policy on the Karmapa issue. According to senior sources in the Vajpayee Government, it had been decided that the 14-year old Ugyen Trinley Dorje, who is the 17th Kagyu Karmapa, would not be allowed to enter Sikkim.

It is not known whether the Karmapa had made any formal request to be allowed to go to Sikkim but the Government's decision not to let him travel to the Rumtek monastery is part of a larger decision to deal with the issue without generating any tensions in the relationship with China.

Sikkim's Rumtek monastery is the headquarters of the Kagyu sect and houses the legendary ``black hat''. The monastery is also the base for Shamar Rinpoche, an anti-China voice; the Rumtek group does not recognise Trinley Dorje as the 17th Karmapa. Instead, Shamar Rinpoche has propped up a different Karmapa, Thaye Dorje.

Since 1994, the supporters of the two Karmapas have been at loggerheads. By denying Trinley Dorje permission to go to Sikkim, the Indian Government has for now ensured that it was not seen as encouraging a power struggle at Rumtek.

The decision not to let Trinley Dorje travel to Sikkim is the minimum agreement that has emerged from within the Government. The Defence Minister, Mr. George Fernandes, has publicly said that Trinley Dorje could stay in India without in any way hurting India-China relations. This statement has not been much appreciated in the collective counsel at the highest level.

The Vajpayee Government is yet to figure out what the affair is all about. For now, there seems to be an agreement between New Delhi and Beijing that both the sides would approach the issue unhurriedly, would be in regular touch and would seek to accommodate each other's concerns.

The understanding means that both sides would pretend that Beijing was as much surprised as New Delhi at the arrival of the young Karmapa in India; this assessment presumably does not admit to the ``Chinese ploy'' theory, which makes it easier for the Government to take a less hurried attitude. It also means no immediate asylum for the Karmapa, even if he makes a request for it. Nor for that matter is there a clear assessment as to what the American stand, if any, is in the matter.

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