No point in return to China, prefer India.. best place: Dalai Lama

Dalai Lama has issued his first response on the December 9 clash in Tawang, the first since the standoff between troops in the sensitive Galwan area of Ladakh.

New Delhi, Dec 19: Amid Tawang face-off, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Monday said that he prefers India and that there is no point in returning to China.

"Things are improving in general in Europe, Africa and Asia... China too is becoming flexible. But there is no point in returning to China. I prefer India... best place," Dalai Lama can be heard saying in a video tweeted by ANI.

"Kangra-Pandit Nehru. This place is my permanent residence," he added.

Dalai Lama is said to be "the present incarnation of the previous thirteen Dalai Lamas of Tibet (the first having been born in 1391 CE), who are in turn considered to be manifestations of Avalokiteshvara, or Chenrezig, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, holder of the White Lotus," as per the official website.

At age two, then named Lhamo Dhondup, he was recognised as the reincarnation of the previous 13th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso.

"In exile, the Central Tibetan Administration led by His Holiness appealed to the United Nations to consider the question of Tibet. The General Assembly adopted three resolutions on Tibet in 1959, 1961 and 1965," his website further reads.

Earlier this month, Beijing had criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi for greeting the Dalai Lama on his 87th birthday, saying India should stop using Tibet-related issues to interfere in China's internal affairs.

However, India rejected China's criticism and asserted that it is a consistent policy to treat the Dalai Lama as an honoured guest of the country.

The Dalai Lama has been living in India ever since he fled Tibet in 1959. The Tibetan government-in-exile operates from India and over 1,60,000 Tibetans live in the country.