Manipur’s Divide
The ethnic tensions in Manipur between the Kuki-Zo tribes and the Meitei community have brought the state's governance under intense scrutiny.
A complete shutdown was observed across the Union territory of Ladakh on Monday as protests continued against attempts to malign the Tibetan spiritual and temporal leader the Dalai Lama. Shutdown was also observed in the Shia Muslim dominated Kargil district of Ladakh.
Hundreds of people marched on the streets seeking apology from the media houses that were engaged in the campaign to show Dalai Lama in poor lightlight and tarnish his image. A rally was held in Leh’s Polo Ground where a large number of people gathered after a protest march in the town. A rally was also held in Zanskar.
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The Buddhists are annoyed over the attempts to defame the Dalai Lama by misinterpretation of a viral video in which the spiritual leader was seen kissing a boy and asking him to suck his tongue.
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The protestors described it a conspiracy under which a doctored video of the Dalai Lama was made viral and after that statements were made to defame the spiritual leader.
The Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) and the Ladakh Gompa Association (LGA) had called for the shutdown. The Tibetan community also participated in the protests. They said attempts were being made to tarnish the image of the Dalai Lama.
The Kargil based Imam Khomeini Memorial Trust has expressed solidarity with the Dalai Lama and urged the government to investigate the matter and punish those involved in the campaign.
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