On the event of the sixty fifth anniversary of the 14th Dalai Lama’s, Tenzin Gyatso, escape to India from Tibet, the Assam Rifles mirrored on its ongoing connection with the religious chief, whom they had been entrusted with making certain a protected evacuation. The fifth battalion of the power was assigned the accountability of safely escorting the Dalai Lama and his entourage by way of the North East Frontier Agency, now generally known as Arunachal Pradesh, into Assam as they crossed into Indian territory on March 31, 1959.
“The legacy of the 5th Assam Rifles’ escort of the Dalai Lama in 1959 remains a poignant chapter in the shared history of India and Tibet, symbolising the enduring spirit of friendship, support and humanitarianism,” the paramilitary power mentioned in a press release.
Assam Rifles and its bond with Dalai Lama
The Assam Rifles emphasised that their enduring bond with the Dalai Lama has continued over the years, with a devoted contingent from the troop, usually referred to because the ‘Dalai Lama battalion’, making an annual pilgrimage to Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh to obtain his blessings. The religious chief additionally cherishes recollections of his evacuation by the fifth Assam Rifles, which he recounted throughout his go to to Guwahati in April 2017, as famous by the Assam Rifles.
During this go to, he had the chance to meet Havildar Naren Chandra Das (retired), who was a part of the crew that escorted him to Tezpur in Assam. In a gesture of gratitude, the Dalai Lama offered his private weapons to the fifth Assam Rifles, now prominently displayed on the Assam Rifles Museum in Shillong.
Dalai Lama’s escape to India from Tibet
The fifth Battalion of the Assam Rifles was deployed within the Kameng Frontier Division of the Arunachal Pradesh since 1958. Its posts had been spanning over a big space together with Chuthangmu, Bumla and Chuna in Kameng Frontier and Longju and Taksing in Subhansiri Frontier. During this era, there was an rebellion happening in Tibet. The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, alongside with his household escaped from Lhasa on 17 Mar 1959. On March 26 1959, Dalai Lama’s fleeing caravan lastly reached Lhuntse Dzong – a couple of days march from the McMahon Line from the border between India and Tibet. The Journey of the Dalai Lama into India was not solely a symbolic act of defiance towards the Chinese occupation but in addition a testomony to the compassion and help prolonged by the Indian authorities and its armed forces, significantly the 5 Assam Rifles regiment.
Tibetan Uprising
In 1959, the Tibetan Rebellion started with a revolt in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet Area, which had been beneath the efficient management of the People’s Republic of China and was subjected to socialist reform. Armed battle between Tibetan rebels and the People’s Liberation Army began and unfold to different areas of Tibet. The Chinese tried to subdue the Tibetans by concentrating on political and religious leaders. His Holiness the Dalai Lama, being a cynosure, due to this fact grew to become a major goal of their makes an attempt to quell the liberty motion. Since, then he has been residing in Dharamshala, Northern India. The Central Tibetan Administration led by His Holiness has lengthy appealed to the UN to think about the query of Tibet. The General Assembly resultantly, adopted three resolutions on Tibet in 1959, 1961 and 1965.
Significant function of 5 Assam Rifles in escape of Dalai Lama
As information of the Dalai Lama’s escape unfold, the Indian authorities swiftly responded by dispatching a contingent of the 5 Assam Rifles to guarantee his protected passage into India. The 5 Assam Rifles, a paramilitary power identified for its valour and self-discipline, performed a pivotal function in safeguarding the Dalai Lama and his entourage throughout their arduous trek throughout the treacherous Himalayan terrain. On March 31, 1959, his holiness was obtained by the celebration of the fifth Bn The Assam Rifles and the folks of Monyulat on the Frontier Post of Chuthangmu in Kameng Division. Thereafter, fifth Bn the Assam Rifles singularly rescued them safely to India. The description of His Holiness’s escape from Lhasa in Dom Moraes’s timeless ebook “The Revolt in Tibet”, and significantly his onward journey after crossing over to India refers to Assam Rifles for conducting him to security.
Following the Dalai Lamai’s pressured exile to India, the frontier posts of Chuthangmu, Bumla and Chuna noticed a mass ingress of armed Tibetan refugees known as ‘Khampas’, and the fifth Assam Rifles thereafter escorted roughly 12,000 refugees by way of the Kameng Frontier Division. The power additionally recalled that the Dalai Lama’s escape marked an important second not simply in Tibetan historical past but in addition within the evolution of the Indo-Chinese relationship.
“The Chinese Government considers the Dalai Lama a separatist threat due to his advocacy for Tibetan autonomy. The entire episode of the Dalai Lama fleeing through the Indo-Tibet border to India, irked China to the extent that it moved its troops to the India-China border and claimed vast areas of Indian Territory in Kameng and Subansiri Frontier Division,” the assertion mentioned.
Legacy of 5 Assam Rifles in escorting Dalai Lama
The border outpost of 5 Assam Rifles at Longju in Subansiri Division was later evacuated following an armed conflict with the Chinese forces in August 1959, it added. The legacy of the 5 Assam Rifles’ escort of the Dalai Lama in 1959 stays a poignant chapter within the shared historical past of India and Tibet, symbolizing the enduring spirit of friendship, help and humanitarianism. 5 Assam Rifles share a deep bond with the Dalai Lama to an extent {that a} physique of troop visits Dalai Lama yearly to search the blessings of his holiness.
