Cops probing Chinese spy’s Himachal links
SECURITY OF THE DALAI LAMA HAS BEEN STEPPED UP, SAYS STATE DGP; EIGHT CHINESE TRAVELLERS CAUGHT OVER 16 YEARS
SHIMLA: The Himachal Pradesh government has stepped up the security of Dharamshala-based Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama after the recent arrest of Charlie Peng, a Chinese spy in Delhi.
State director general of police Sanjay Kundu said on Saturday that the police are probing the Himachal links of Peng, 42, who is accused of a ₹1,000 crore hawala racket and allegedly bribing Tibetan monks living in Majnuka-tila, a Tibetan settlement in Delhi, to gather information on the Dalai Lama and his aides. “The police are probing the links of the recently arrested Chinese man in Delhi with Himachal. Though the Dalai Lama has avoided moving out of his residence amid the Covid-19 pandemic, we have put his security on high alert and all necessary measures have been taken,” the DGP said. The Dalai Lama, 85, has a three-tier security.
‘CONCERNING DEVELOPMENT’
Tibetan government-in-exile information secretary Tsewang Gyalpo Arya said that the arrest of the spy earlier this month was “a concerning development”.
“China should concentrate on containing the Covid-19 virus that originated in Wuhan rather than sending spies or intruding borders. The only good thing is that the Government of India, the state government and Tibetan security are alert. We are in touch with security agencies in Dharamshala,” Arya said.
Tibetan writer and activist Tenzin Tsundue said: “China seems to be provoking everybody in the world and I wouldn’t be surprised if they remembered us in this moment of frenzy. We have to be extra careful.” Stating that India has provided the best possible security to the Dalai Lama,
Tsundue said, “Every Chinese national approaching the office of the Dalai Lama must be thoroughly checked without exception by Indian security. The intelligence agencies should share notes with their counterparts in Delhi, Kathmandu, Nepal border areas and Beijing for better coordination and analysis.”
FORMER PLA MEN CAUGHT
Though the Dalai Lama gave up his political role in 2011, Dharamshala continues to be the nerve centre of Tibetan activities, closely watched by the Chinese regime.in the past 16 years, eight Chinese travellers have been caught for suspicious activities. They were arrested for travelling without valid documents. Most of those arrested, including Liu Xiadon, have been associated with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).