(TibetanReview.net, Sep12’26) – A day ahead of the much-ballyhooed arrival in New Delhi of Chinese President Xi Jinping for the BRICS summit, scheduled to be held over Sep 12-13, police took into custody five activists of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) and a journalist on Sep 11 morning after the activists unfurled protest banners near the summit’s venue, the Bharat Mandapam in the Pragati Maidan complex.
Four of them are currently being held in Tihar Jail through Sep 14, and the other two at the Connaught Place Police Station, SFT said in a statement Sep 11. The Delhi Police are yet to comment on the matter, noted amp.scroll.in Sep 11.
Defying tight security, the four SFT activists, including three who climbed poles on a tunnel road, unfurled two banners reading “Xi Jinping = Genocide” and “Tibet is Facing Ecocide: Free Tibet” alongside a Tibetan National Flag.
Two of the activists, belonging to the India chapter of SFT, have been named as Karma Dolma and Tenzin Tsephel.
Working in solidarity with the Tibetan people in their struggle for freedom and independence, SFT has called on the BRICS leaders to “take a firm, united stand against Beijing’s expansionism to safeguard regional security and environmental stability.”
The group has called China’s ongoing building of a 60,000-megawatt Super Dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo, right near the India border, a ticking time bomb threatening Northeast India and downstream Bangladesh. It has also condemned China’s “execution of a deliberate, long-term expansionist agenda” and said, “True stability requires standing firm against Beijing, recognizing Tibet’s historic independence, and anchoring diplomacy in the legal foundation of the 1914 Simla Convention.”
On the same day, the Tibetan Youth Congress staged a protest rally in and around the Samyeling Tibetan community area of Delhi. The group strongly condemned President Xi’s participation in the BRICS Summit and accused his government of pursuing policies aimed at eroding Tibet’s cultural, religious and national identity.
Th group urged India and other BRICS member states to raise the issue of Tibet with the Chinese leadership during the summit, saying international cooperation could not ignore human rights concerns.
Sikyong Penpa Tsering, the executive head of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), urged Xi to demonstrate commitment to global peace by addressing issues within China, including concerns related to Tibet, according to english.dainikjagranmpcg.com, Sep 12.
“He said the Tibetan leadership has consistently supported better relations between countries, including India and China, but stressed that the aspirations of the Tibetan people cannot be forgotten. Tsering said trust remains a major challenge in dealing with the Chinese government and maintained that dialogue is the way forward,” noted the ANI news service Sep 12.
The Sikyong has reiterated the Tibetan leadership’s commitment to the Middle Way Policy, which seeks a negotiated solution.
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Xi landed in New Delhi on Sep 12 afternoon. From establishing temporary no-fly zones over his hotel to conducting checks for potential so-called CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear) threats, Xi’s security during his 24-hour visit to India was set to reach an unprecedented scale, said timesofindia.com Sep 12.
The report said: “The security measures are attributed mainly to the perceived threat from a lone-wolf attack or even demonstrations by Tibetan activists. Beijing has warned specifically about the possible use of drones, banners, loudspeakers and balloons as tools for anti-China propaganda and sought effective measures to keep out low-altitude, small-size aerial objects and other UAVs.”
The idea was to ensure that Xi would see or hear no Tibetan or others’ protests while guaranteeing his personal safety throughout his stay in New Delhi.
Apart from attending the BRICS summit, Xi is scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sep 12 evening.
China “is willing” to work together with India, to view two-way relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, properly manage differences, and be “good neighbours and friends, as well as mutually supportive partners,” Reuters Sep 12 cited China’s foreign ministry spokesperson as saying Sep 11.
BRICS originally comprised Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with the addition of South Africa later on. It expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, while Indonesia joined in 2025. Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam became BRICS partner countries last year.