(TibetanReview.net, Jun06’24) —The Dalai Lama has on Jun 5 congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India as the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), of which his BJP is the leading partner, won re-election for a third consecutive term following the wrapping up of the counting of votes on Jun 4. Apart from 90 heads of state, including US president Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin, China also congratulated Modi, expressing readiness to work with India to advance bilateral ties.
“It fills me with admiration and pride to see India upholding its responsibility as the world’s largest democracy. These elections have indicated how much the people of India value their democracy,” the Dalai Lama said in his message.
He expressed “the Tibetan people’s immense gratitude to the government and people of India for its warm hospitality” and for facilitating the preservation of “our ancient cultural heritage in exile, in peace and freedom.”
Modi is expected to be sworn-in for a record-equalling third term on Jun 8, after key allies pledged their continued support. His BJP lost its outright majority in parliament in a surprise election verdict.
Modi’s BJP won 240 of the 543 seats while the main opposition Congress won 99 seats. With 292 seats, the BJP-led NDA is comfortably above the majority mark of 272, while the Congress led INDIA-alliance won 232 seats, as per the results announced on Jun 4.
Leaders from both BJP and the opposition Congress party called on the Dalai Lama during the course of the election campaign. Prime Minister Modi spoke of his frequent talks with the Dalai Lama during an election speech.
In its message, China on Jun 5 congratulated Modi on the victory of the BJP-led NDA coalition in the general elections and said both countries should turn to the future to advance bilateral relations.
A healthy and stable China-India relationship is in the interest of both the countries, and conducive to the peace and development in this region and beyond, the PTI news agency Jun 5 cited Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning as saying while responding to a question by the official media seeking China’s comment on Modi’s win.
A good number of the around 70,000 Tibetans in India are eligible to register as voters as citizens by birth and their offspring, but only few have opted to do so. Indian media reports said over 2,000 Tibetans, including around 800 in Dharamshala, took part in the polls.