Robert Vadra may lose no-frisking privilege at airports

[DharmaSpace]

New Delhi: The civil aviation ministry has written again to the home ministry asking for the removal of the category under which Robert Vadra and the Dalai Lama are exempt from being frisked at Indian airports. The current list of 22 categories of people exempted from security checks at all civilian airports includes the president, the vice-president, the prime minister, former presidents, the speaker of the Lok Sabha, the chief justice of India, judges of the Supreme Court, leaders of the opposition in both Houses, Union ministers of cabinet rank, chief ministers, governors, ambassadors, the deputy chairmen in both Houses of Parliament, the cabinet secretary, visiting dignitaries, the three service chiefs, the Dalai Lama and Vadra. Vadra, son-in-law of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and the Dalai Lama fall under the category called private individuals. The aviation ministry wants this category to go, said a top government official who asked not to be identified, and has said as much in its letter, the second such. The Dalai Lama could be collateral damage if the category is removed. Although the official added that he could be placed under the category of heads of state in exile, this is unlikely because he isn’t one, a second government official added. “The Dalai Lama is a revered spiritual leader and an honoured guest in India,” added this person who pointed out that the elected Tibetan prime minister in exile Lobsang Sangay was head of the Tibetans in exile. In a meeting chaired by aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati a few weeks back, the minister said he would like to see all security exemption at airports to be on “need basis”, a third government official present at the meeting said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

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The Dalai Lama will no longer have the privilege not to be searched at indian airports. The Dalai Lama influence is on the wane due to the continuing Dorje Shudgen ban, as the Dalai lama influence on the world stage diminishes so will CTA ability to negotiate with Chinese. Ultimately Tibetans following CTA there is no future for them at all. Sad but true.

[christine V]

Thanks for sharing this news. Ultimately, if this list is removed. It means that the CTA position in India as refugees are on shaking level. The new government no longer treated H.H as special guest. If CTA is clever enough, this is not time to fight against own refugees for the Dorje Shugden's ban, but, for the return to China. Else if anything happened to H.H, CTA will ended up to where?