New Delhi: The all-party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet has demanded Bharat Ratna for Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. APIPFT has appealed to the central government through a resolution that the Dalai Lama be given Bharat Ratna. The forum has urged the government that the proposal sent to confer Bharat Ratna on the Dalai Lama should be taken seriously and positively. India had earlier conferred its highest civilian award on two non-Indians.

Non-Indians honoured with Bharat Ratna include Abdul Ghaffar Khan of Pakistan, known as Frontier Gandhi, and Nobel Peace Prize winner and former South African President Nelson Mandela. Pakistani Abdul Ghaffar Khan received the award in 1987. While Nelson Mandela was awarded this award in 1990. The Dalai Lama came to India after China occupied Tibet in 1959 and has been living here ever since.

APIPFT has also proposed to enact a new policy on the lines of the US Tibetan Policy and Support Act. The forum has more than 20 MPs from all political parties, including the BJP. The forum urged all lawmakers to address the issues of Tibetans living in different parts of the country in consultation with local authorities and pay special attention to resolving the issues. The all-party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet (APIPFT) was revived last year and it was at that time that the forum held its first meeting.

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