The Red Shadow

Amidst all the drama, on 15 June, Ugyen Trinley, the candidate of Situ Rinpoche, reached Tsurphu. Escorted by a convoy of seven cars, the child looked rather disorientated. There had been an accident en route and two people had been killed. Chinese officials were calling the shots. About 2000 Tibetans paraded before the trulku to receive his blessing. A couple of days later, the boy's public appearances were abruptly cancelled. Now one could only get a blessing through a glass panel. Akong Trulku admitted that he had given the order to shield the reincarnation. No representative from Rumtek had joined the celebrations.

Drubpon Dechen Rinpoche was the head lama in Tsurphu and one of the main figures in bringing Ugyen Trinley to the Karmapa's seat. Years before, he had approached the XVIth Karmapa with an offer to travel secretly to Tibet and help rebuild the old monastery. Notwithstanding the lama's fervour, the idea failed to enthuse the Karmapa. Without opposing him, the Karmapa had dissuaded him, saying frankly that he saw no future for the place. But after the death of the Karmapa, Drubpon Dechen Rinpoche went to Tibet on orders from Situ Rinpoche. Now, he was claiming that the XVIth Karmapa had sent him to Tsurphu.

He disclosed that the search party for the XVIIth Karmapa, headed by his assistant, Lama Dholmo, and armed with a copyof the prediction letter, had actually left Tsurphu as early as 8 April. The group had been dispatched despite the prior agreement among the four rinpoches that no such mission should take place before Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche reported his initial contacts. The four regents had decided that Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche, and not Lama Dholmo, was to make the first approach. How a local lama got hold of a copy of the then top-secret document and why he was usurping Kongtrul's place more than two weeks prior Kongtrul's tragic death remained a mystery. Drubpon Dechen Rinpoche admitted that Akong and Sherab, the two regents' emissaries, had personally handed over the copy of the letter to him. At that time, they had no business in Tsurphu and were hardly supposed to be roaming the distant stretches of Tibet, certainly not with a copy of the prediction letter in their pockets.

Drubpon Dechen Rinpoche described the different wonders that had occurred during the time of the child's birth: among others, the sound of musical instruments had been heard for two hours in the valley and four suns had appeared in the sky. (In his address in Tibetan at Rumtek, Situ Rinpoche had mentioned only three suns though while addressing the foreigners in English, he forgot the suns altogether.)

He acknowledged that in 1991 Situ Rinpoche had visited the monastery where Ugyen Trinley (the candidate) was a monk. Interestingly, Situ Rinpoche, who in 1991 alone had recognised the rather extravagant number of about a hundred and sixty reincarnations in eastern Tibet, had been unaware of a boy whose birth had been accompanied by such miraculous signs. Furthermore, the boy was believed to have taken part in one-and-a-half months of initiations that Situ Rinpoche had given in Palpung, the headquarters of his monastery in Tibet, that same year. To the discerning eye, it all looked like Situ Rinpoche had fixed his eyes on the child long before he sat with his peers to interpret the instructions concerning the whereabouts of this child.

On 24 April, a picture of the boy was taken, and a pick-up party was being organised to bring the trulku to Tsurphu — all this prior to Jamgon Kongtrul's death. On 17 May, the two regents declared publicly in Rumtek that, since Shamar Rinpochewas away, they had to act alone and were therefore sending Akong and Sherab on a search mission to Tibet. The two emissaries arrived in Tsurphu in the second half of May, and a group of sixteen was promptly sent to Kham. It was also announced that Ugyen Trinley, the XVIIth Karmapa, would arrive in Tsurphu on 20 June. He arrived on the fifteenth instead. If this group of sixteen had indeed been the initial discovery team, then these men had been given at the most 20 days to complete a round-trip journey from central to eastern Tibet, their task: to locate the boy in the large, nomad area of Kham, and to negotiate with the parents for his delivery to Tsurphu. All travel was to be taken on the one-lane, treacherous, gravel roads of the high Tibetan plateau. It was a physically impossible task. Although the interpretation of the prediction letter was clear as to the name of the family and the general region in the east of the country, there was, of course, no address. There must have existed at least one earlier search team, which was exactly what Drubpon Dechen Rinpoche had carelessly disclosed. More than that, Lama Dholmo's group, which had set off on 8 April, was probably looking for somebody Situ Rinpoche knew fairly well, as he seemed to have met the child at least in 1991, if not earlier. The group that was dispatched from Tsurphu at the end of May was merely a reception committee; they were well aware of where to go to collect the boy.

Apparently, Situ, Gyaltshab, Akong Rinpoches and others were going hand-in-glove with the Chinese. Secretly, they had planned to exclude Shamar Rinpoche and install their candidate in Tsurphu without his knowledge. But this was never a secret to Beijing. They could not have accomplished such a mission without official Communist blessing and active help; in fact, the two eminences had a lot to thank the Politburo of the Communist Party of China for.

In the meantime, Situ Rinpoche recognised the reincarnation of Kalu Rinpoche. The mother of the reincarnation was said to have been a few months pregnant, carrying the new Kalu, at the time when the old Kalu passed away. This was none other than the son of Kalu Rinpoche's nephew Lama Gyaltsen and his Bhutanese wife. Lama Gyaltsen has yet another son from a Canadian lady during their sojourn there in 1970. Kalu Rinpoche took extreme pains to ensure that Lama Gyaltsen stayed away from them. A few days earlier, a similar prodigy had been born to Dechen Bejon a German disciple of Kalu Rinpoche in Darjeeling. Her husband was Darius Bejon, better known as Lama Samdrub of Anglo-Parsee parentage. Darius was actually a high reincarnate whom Kalu Rinpoche refused to enthrone for reasons best known to him. The young infant too met the same fate and he remains unrecognised, even though a novice under Tai Situ. It is for the reader to judge as to whether this constitutes racial discrimination or not. Amazingly, in spite of all this, the mother is now an integral part of the Tai Situ camp. Strange are the ways of people!

In April 1999, Situ Rinpoche sought special permission from the Government of India to visit Sonada, the seat of Kalu Rinpoche, as the fatherof the reincarnation of the rinpoche had expired. In his request, he mentioned that the deceased was his relative. This was none other than a continuation of the dissimulation at which he had become a maestro. Lama Gyaltsen was from Tre-hor, an extreme eastern region of Tibet bordering China; Tai Situ is from Dege. Yet the Govt of India fell for this ploy and granted the necessary permission. Tai Situ used this opportunity to consolidate his position in the hills.

Ever since Situ Rinpoche had announced his discovery of the reincarnation of the XVIIth Karmapa, he had been promising his followers that the Karmapa would be, in no time, officially installed in Rumtek. The departure of the reincarnation for India was said to be only a matter of days, maybe, weeks. Later, however, with no sign of Ugyen Trinley outside Tibet, the weeks stretched into months and the months became years. Situ Rinpoche and his followers staged a coup by 'smuggling' Ugyen Trinley to India in the first week of January 2000 with the active partition of the Sikkim Joint Action Committee lead by Kunsang Sherab in Gangtok. A group had visited Ugyen Trinlay Dorje in Tibet Oct 99 obviously when the entire 'escape' plan had been finalised.

In an earlier communication, Lama Ole, a European Buddhist Lama appointed by the XVIth Karmapa, had demanded to know what would happen if the officially chosen Karmapa would request, of his own free will or prodded by the Chinese, that the 'Black Vajra Crown' and other relics be returned to Tibet. "How could we delay or refuse such a request?" He had asked.

On 27 September 1992, when Ugyen Trinley was enthroned in Tsurphu as the XVIIth Karmapa, the Rumtek monastery, members of the Karmapa Charitable Trust, and the majority of the representatives of the Kagyu centres in the West did not approve of the procedure. Shamar Rinpoche, historically second after the Karmapa in the Karma Kagyu spiritual hierarchy, did not attend the ceremonies.

Beijing had officially recognised the Karmapa two months ago, on 29 June bestowing the title of the 'Living Buddha' on him. The Chinese recognition coincided with the Dalai Lama's formal approval, which was given in Dharamsala on the same day. The title itself was a Communist synonym for a cooperating lama. Akong Tulku of Scotland monastery had already joined the ranks of the Living Buddha. He had also been appointed to the government of the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR). The Communist propaganda machine did not fail to mention that the XVIIth Karmapa would become an individual loyal to his socialist motherland.

The reasons for the Dalai Lama co-operating with the Chinese Govt is not clear. There is one point of view which asserts that he had been contacted by Beijing, obviously through Gyalo Thondup, his elder brother, to the effect that if he were to accept this recognition, the Chinese Govt would invite him for further talks on Tibet. The Dalai Lama kept his part of the bargain; the Chinese did not!

The high profile of the Chinese officials punctuated the installation ceremony. The enthronement was preceded by their speeches, a presentation of a letter from Beijing — thegovernment's seal of approval on the reincarnation and the enthronement — and by the exchanges of the traditional scarves and gifts. The shrine room overflowed with visitors from all over Tibet. The Tibetans working for the Chinese-backed government in Lhasa arrived in full force. There were also many Karma Kagyu rinpoches from Nepal and India and some westerners.

The child looked quite distressed, just as a seven-year-old would under such circumstances. He could not sit still for more than a moment, had no clue as to what was happening — as he was constantly being whispered to whenever the ceremony required even a minimal level of his participation — and towards the end got clearly irritated. Probably it was nothing unusual for a boy of his age coming from a nomad family.

Looking rather out of place on his throne and in his gold brocades, clearly uncomfortable with the rituals being performed around him, he also displayed an intolerant streak. Easily angered, he constantly threw things at anyone entering the room. His grimaces were those of anger and not of mischief as generated by a boyish desire to tease his elders. The happy family reunion on the terrace of the monastery came to an abrupt end as the young boy dismissed his parents and siblings with a proud gesture. These hardly constitute enlightened behaviour! However, the preceding events have clearly shown the depths to which supposedly enlightened beings can stoop when it comes to fulfilling their own selfish ends.

China's Tibet, a quarterly review magazine from Beijing, claimed that 40,000 people filed by in an orderly fashion to receive blessings from the XVIIth Karmapa. In the meantime, a two-page release signed by Lobsang Deleg Rinpoche reached the Karma Kagyu centres overseas. He had a lot of interesting things to say. According to his statement, the important ceremony in Tsurphu was, in fact, preceded by rather inauspicious events both in Rumtek and in Tibet. When Ugyen Trinley was officially brought to his seat, a golden banner fell down from the protector's shrine in Rumtek. Also one of his cars in the entourage skidded and overturned on the dangerous road, killing two passengers. At the enthronement ceremony itself, some people waiting outside were injured by a boulder that rolled down a mountain slope beside the monastery. Situ Rinpoche's younger brother started a scuffle with the police, and was arrested and held for several hours. Finally, the monks, in an attempt tomanage the crowd, had fought with the other participants and a chaotic atmosphere had set in. These were clearly extremely ominous signs.

Meanwhile, a pamphlet bearing the name of J. P. Smith from Dharamsala landed at Karma Kagyu centres all over the world. It stated that the dispute in the lineage was an integral part of Asian politics. Power and money were behind it. The next year (1993), the American Congress was to review China's most-favoured-nation status. Beijing was earning billions of dollars in trade with the United States of America; the American trade deficit with the Communist nation was, in fact, topped only by its deficit with Japan. With the Democrats in the White House, the passage of the Bill in Congress was not expected to be such a smooth ride as it had been during Bush's tenure. China needed to show the world, and especially the Congressmen in Capitol Hill, that she was treating her minorities well.

The pamphlet added that Beijing had managed to split the Tibetans between the Dalai and Panchen Lamas so as to suppress the occupied country, but in 1989, when the Panchen Lama had died, Tibetans began to rebel. Demonstrations had been held in Lhasa and in the big monasteries around the capital. The inevitable clamp-down followed. Western television showed scenes of Chinese soldiers beating, even torturing Buddhist monks. The Chinese Politburo needed somebody to calm the rebellious Himalayan nation, and so they fixed their gaze — not for the first time — on the Karmapa. The Chinese leaders had rightly concluded that the best way to control the Chinese Tibetans would be to manipulate their trulkus. A policy of Politburo's official involvement in the recognition of reincarnates had been, in actual fact, confidentially adopted a few years before. The old Maoists had become experts in the delicate process of locating famous lamas. The Communists, who did not even admit to the mind's existence, had suddenly become an authority in recognising a mind's reincarnation.

After the happenings in June '92, Situ and Gyaltshab Rinpoches ruled the roost at Rumtek. It seemed that they were bracing to assume full control of the Karma Kagyu order. Shamar Rinpoche left the scene of the battle altogether and stayed in France for some time.

The Rumtek monks' main concern was to carry out the instruction of their lama, the XVIth Karmapa. They pledged to continue with their duties in the monastery and made a strong commitment not to let the place fall into the hands of outsiders. Consequently, in order to prevent the possible removal of the Karmapa's possessions, they locked up and sealed all the Karmapa's belongings. Confronted with the sharp division at the top, they decided neither to follow nor to oppose any of the regents. No wonder, the cloister's legitimate inhabitants fell victim to insults, followed by intimidation, and finally physical violence for their tepid support to Situ Rinpoche. The monks brought from other monasteries during the last rites for the late Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche began to interfere systematically in the monastic administration and harass the legitimate caretakers. Tobga had already been forced to leave the monastery for Bhutan for want of adequate security from the Sikkim government.

Early November 1992, Shamar Rinpoche and Rumtek monks together with members of the Rumtek administration and a group of trustees held a meeting at the Karmapa's headquarters. The room was jampacked. Everybody sensed that a significant decision was to follow. Shamar Rinpoche began by repeating his assertion in June and also narrated the following developments. He iterated that he had knowledge of a trustworthy person who had been holding the XVIth Karmapa's instructions concerning the XVIIth reincarnation. The time had come for him to devote his full attention to the fulfillment of these instructions. He solemnly declared that until the Karmapa was found in accordance with such a genuine mandate, he would be unable to perform his duties at Rumtek. He was, for the moment, giving up his commitments in the monastery. His words were greeted with uncomfortable silence.

It was an unexpected about-turn. The Rumtek monastery and the Nalanda Institute would be left exclusively in the custody of the monks and the Karmapa Charitable Trust. Situ Rinpoche had, of course, no business at the Karma Kagyu headquarters. His seat, Sherab Ling, lay in the west Himalayas, more than 1800 km from Rumtek. During the years after the death of the Karmapain 1981, he had shown scant interest in the Rumtek affairs and had not contributed a rupee to its coffers. His present bid for the leadership of the Karma Kagyu order's headquarters had no legitimate basis whatsoever except that he was one of the trustees of the Karmapa Charitable Trust. His ally, Gyaltshab Rinpoche, although a resident of Sikkim, had not offered much support either. He was devoted to his own monastery at Ralang, in Sikkim.

The Karmapa's main seat had been, in fact, managed and financially supported by Tobga and his administration. He was actively assisted in this task by Shamar and Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoches. Since Tobga was away, the management would come to rest on the monks' shoulders. The trustees, two of them based in Gangtok, remained the legal caretakers, but they were hardly in a position to travel daily to Rumtek and share the duties with the monks. In any eventuality, the monks would have no one to help them to confront the intruders. The Sikkim government, headed by Nar Bahadur Bhandari, was least expected to intervene impartially.

On 17 November, Shamar Rinpoche issued an official statement. He declared that he would not object to the Chinese government's decision to recognise Ugyen Trinley as the Karmapa. He had no jurisdiction in China and was completely unable to stop their action. Disclosing that his agreement to the Dalai Lama's recognition was delivered out of respect to the Tibetan leader, he pledged that he would hold firmly to the tradition of the Gyalwa Karmapa by following only his genuine instructions.

Tension escalated in Rumtek. Gyaltshab Rinpoche had convened an assembly of Karma Kagyu monasteries from India and Nepal on 30 November. Ten days earlier (on 20 November), Shamar Rinpoche held an emergency meeting with the monks. They realised that they themselves had no power to stop the rabble from getting into Sikkim and staging their gathering at the Karmapa's seat. Some of the younger monks, getting restless, called for confrontation but, in the end, the idea of violence was abjured. Instead, the participants decided to ask Chief Minister Nar Bahadur Bhandari for protection. Sitting in the Chief Minister's office later in the afternoon, Khenpo ChodhragTenphel, the head abbot, Nendo Tulku, vajra master, and a few others, expressed their apprehensions about the planned conference. They stated their position and asked the Chief Minister to prevent an illegal occupation of the monastery. Before leaving, they submitted an appeal to the Chief Minister.

The appeal was made on behalf of the entire monastic community at Rumtek. The signatories unanimously declared that until a genuine Karmapa was accepted by all, the monks, together with the trustees of the Karmapa Charitable Trust, would hold full responsibility for the management of the monastery. They insisted that the prediction letter presented by Situ Rinpoche be scrutinised by scientific methods. They asserted that they would react to any attempt at interference with their duties. No spiritual or political authority other than the Karmapa Charitable Trust would be welcome in Rumtek. The Chief Minister assured them of his unyielding efforts to keep peace at Rumtek and, with a reassuring smile, shooed his guests out.

The next day, the caretakers at Rumtek reached a decision. They would lock the monastery to prevent the gathering convened by Gyaltshab Rinpoche from taking place. If the visitors managed to make it across the Sikkim border from Nepal via West Bengal and arrived at the monastery's doors, they would find the portals bolted. The majority of the monks were to leave for Nepal to participate in another ceremony for the late Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche. Shamar Rinpoche was already on his way to Nepal. The students from the Nalanda Institute were also departing for winter vacation. Major activity in the cloister would cease. There were only a few staff members and monks left. Situ Rinpoche assailed the decision of the senior regent to close all the shrines of the monastery abruptly.

On 25 November, the Sikkim police entered Rumtek and took up positions around the monastery. They came to ensure that no fighting broke out when the other party arrived for their planned assembly.

The next day, Tse-chokling Rinpoche, a government official from Gangtok, appeared outside the nearly deserted Rumtek. Armed with the Chief Minister's orders to make the place accessible for the planned conference, he demanded that thedoors of the monastery be opened instantly. "Make haste," he thundered at the lone staff member who showed up to receive him. Confronted with a Sikkim government official waving a bunch of documents in his face, the stupefied man quietly extracted the keys from his pocket and quickly unlocked the gates. Hectic preparations for the planned conference continued for the next three days, and the monastery's legitimate custodians were ignored. The handful of administrators present traveled daily to Gangtok to petition the Chief Minister for action against this act of trespassing of their cloister. They were informed that the Chief Minister was in Delhi and his office had no power to act. Unable to stop the aggression, the monk and nun community, the Nalanda Institute, and the Rumtek administration resorted to the last weapon available. On 29 November, their representatives issued one more written statement.

They declared that they did not refuse to accept Situ and Gyaltshab Rinpoches' claim to have located the Karmapa's true reincarnation on the basis of authentic instructions. Neither did they decline to accept Shamar Rinpoche's assertion of the existence of genuine instructions indicating a true reincarnation. However, they could only follow decisions made by the Karmapa Charitable Trust and under no circumstances would they accept resolutions made by lamas, their administrations and other political groups.

Despite the protests, the state government backed the 'Kagyu International Assembly', as the meeting was called by the organisers. It began with a bang.

The Karmapa Charitable Trust was a painful thorn in the flesh of Situ and Gyaltshab Rinpoches. Although a trustee himself, Situ Rinpoche stood as a single minority within the trust. The other trustees were not rushing into an endorsement of Situs candidate. To complicate matters, Tobga did not seem to exercise his fellow trustees' restraint and was, in fact, moving ahead full steam against the two regents. Situ Rinpoche feared that Tobga's bellicose mood was having a contagious influence on the other trustees who might soon catch the infection and contemplate a more aggressive course of action. The dangerous situation had to be dealt with immediately.

Hence, in his opening address, Situ Rinpoche proposed that the present board of trustees be dismissed and a new group of individuals be appointed trustees. He alleged that the trust had come under the negative authority of Tobga and, as such, was exerting an undesirable influence on Rumtek and other Karma Kagyu places in the world. Its present trustees had to be discharged. He argued that the monastery and all of the Karmapa's property was not safe until they had a new and healthy trust. The ragtag assembly convened by the two eminences seemed to fully agree with the reasoning.

A few voices of dissent piped up unexpectedly. These dissidents argued that the trustees had been personally selected by the XVIth Karmapa, and to dismiss them would be to go against the wishes of the late Karmapa. This point did not appear to faze the venerable regents presiding over the meeting. Situ Rinpoche casually remarked that they could do that, they could fire the notorious troublemakers and appoint good trustees in their place. They could also establish a new trust. Unexpectedly this state of affairs did not appeal to a couple of delegates from Gangtok, and feeling they were skating on thin ice, the delegates suddenly left the room. Surprisingly, one of them was Tsechokling Rinpoche, the Sikkim government official who had brought the order of the Chief Minister to unlock the portals of | the monastery for the assembly.

The proceedings were promptly restored, and the rest of the gathering, in utter disregard of the legality of their action, went ahead with the controversial resolution, undeterred by the fact that they were going against the XVIth Karmapa's legacy. The existing Board of Trustees of the Karmapa Charitable Trust was dissolved with immediate effect and seven persons appointed as new trustees. In addition, Tobga was relieved of his function as General Secretary of the trust with immediate effect, and Dhrungyig Tenzin Namgyal was unanimously elected in his place. The supporters of Situ Rinpoche conveniently forgot that altering a country's laws was more difficult than adjusting a historic tradition or forging a religious document. The trust was operating in accordance with the Indian Trust Act 1882 in a democratic and modern society. Another resolution adopted in the meeting said, "The trust does not haveany jurisdiction over the recognition of the Karmapa or any other reincarnate lama."

Firing Tobga from his post within the trust apparently did not fully satisfy the organisers' thirst for vengeance. And so the assembly was also invited to denounce, in most severe terms, the 'ex-General Secretary'. The delegates of the Kagyu International Assembly were only too happy to comply with the diktat. Having listed all "his malicious deeds", the participants unanimously stated that Tobga Yulgyal "had been causing destruction to the dharma and therefore the assembly condemns his actions." In the lengthy resolution, Topga was accused of having sold the Karmapa's property in eastern Bhutan, of having caused friction between dharma teachers and disciples of the Karmapa at the Karmapa's main institutions, and of having led armed soldiers into the Seat of the Karmapa. The assembly then proceeded to dismiss him from his post of Treasurer and General Secretary of the Karma Kagyu institutions, meaning, in this case, Rumtek itself.

Behind the allegation about the Bhutan property hangs an interesting tale. Tashicholing is a palace located in the eastern Bhutan. It belonged to the mother of the Hlrd Bhutanese King, Jigme Dorje, Puntsog Chodron. During a visit to Bhutan, the Karmapa was offered Tashicholing, including all the land and buildings on it. The Queen Mother desired that the Karmapa make a shedhra (institute) or drubdhra (retreat centre) there. The Karmapa accepted the gift and decided to construct a shedhra. Many people suggested the use of the existing buildings instead of constructing a new one. They also pointed out that political changes could occur in the country. The Karmapa answered, "I am a dharma practitioner, and whatever is beneficial for Buddhism, I will do. Even if I built a monastery today and it were dismantled tomorrow, I would not regret it."

The shedhra was constructed. It could accommodate 300 students. It took quite a while to build, but could not start functioning immediately because of the political changes in the country.

In 1983, everybody was trying to carry out those activities that the Karmapa had wanted. One of the projects was the shedhra at Tashicholing. Efforts were made to complete the painting of the shedhra. After completion of the work, Shamar Rinpoche, the official representative of the Karmapa at that time, as per an arrangement between the four rinpoches, wrote to the King, Jigme Senge, a disciple of the Karmapa, but in vain. He then wrote to the home minister. Silence reigned on that front too. At that time restrictions were in force against foreigners establishing any kind of institution within Bhutan. A request was again sent to the home minister that the shedhra would be a purely Bhutanese one. Another one was sent to the newly established religious department. Still no reply came.

Then the Rumtek administration asked for an unequivocal answer: either to give it permission to open the shedhra, or say so otherwise. This time, a reply came. It quoted a resolution that no foreigner was allowed to establish any kind of institution in Bhutan, religious or non-religious. Therefore, permission could not be granted. The letter added, "If you wish to sell the property, the land, the old building and the newly built shedhra, the government will buy it." The trust convened a meeting and decided to accept the Bhutanese government offer. Shamar, Situ and Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoches were present in the meeting. They endorsed the resolution. Since there is a strong dharma link between the Karma and Drugpa Kagyu orders and the successive Bhutan kings, the trust asked the Bhutanese government to assess the valuation of the property and give whatever would be appropriate, and; added that this would be acceptable to it. In the meantime, Jay Khenpo, the highest ranking monk in Bhutan, called up Tobga and offered to buy the building for the monastic community. But the trust had already decided to transfer the property to the Bhutanese government. The payment was not received in cash. It came in the form of bank demand drafts as this was not a private transaction. The amount was rupees four million.

On 3 December, the last day of the conference, the last resolution was passed. Neatly printed on the Rumtek's official stationery, the text read: "We, the followers of the (Karma) Kagyu order, pledge with one pointed faith and reverence to confront anyone who may plan negative and destructive actions concerning this non-controversial issue. We pledge never to acknowledge anyother person who may be falsely given this title." In a letter to the Chief Minister of Sikkim, the delegates went one notch further and dramatically stated, "We take oath that we can never accept and will fully confront if there is any other candidate for the Karmapa."

The signatories on each paper of the documents included, besides Situ, Gyaltshab, Ponlop and Bokar Rinpoches, Bardo Tulku, and Kunga Trinley, signing on behalf of the Dalai Lama, and Traleg Rinpoche, a representative of Tenga Rinpoche. Another resolution passed on the last day of the conference denounced The Karmapa Papers, a publication from Paris on developments in respect of the vexing issue of reincarnation of the Karmapa, as a heap of "fabrications, misinformation, and outright lies, and not even a paragraph of truth to be found in this corrupted and false publication."

Later, talking to his European disciples, Shamar Rinpoche presented the situation in allegorical terms. He quoted the Tibetan fable of the lion and the elephant, which vividly illustrated Situ's machination to usurp the seat of the Karmapa. The story goes: The lion and the elephant both wanted to be king of the animals. The lion declared that the elephant's eyes were too small for such a serious task. He roared and showed his big teeth, claiming only he could protect the animals. Obviously, they needed witnesses to settle the issue. They then summoned the tiger, who at once agreed that the lion was by far the best suited for the job. But then somebody had to be witness for the tiger. And so the buffalo was called in and he witnessed for the tiger, then the pig witnessed for the buffalo, and so on until in this fashion it boiled down to the tiniest flea. The flea voted for the lion. And thus it happened that the lion was crowned king of the animals by a flea.

He told them of the volte-face of several rinpoches and tulkus. They had to act in accordance with the political status quo of the region. Having monasteries in Tibet, they were responsible for their people in the occupied country. If they wanted to visit their old places and preserve their positions, (as also reestablish their monasteries and so on) they had no choice but to follow the Chinese line. Such points might be difficult to accept for people with a free, democraticbackground, Shamar Rinpoche admitted, but added that the lamas were bound by the traditional rules and current political (ground) realities.

Probably aware that the dissolution of the trust might pose some legal complications, the 'new trustees' began to consider other means to exert pressure on the 'dismissed trustees'. They opted for direct confrontation.

Tenzin Chonyi, the freshly appointed member of the trust, presented himself at the Gangtok residences of two of the legitimate trustees, Jigdral Tashi Densapa and Sherab Gyaltshen. In an aggressive and loud manner, he demanded that the two trustees sign an acceptance of the assembly's resolutions. The two trustees let the agitated Tenzin know that they had been entrusted by the XVIth Karmapa to assume, with five others, the administrative authority of the order from the time of his death until his XVIIth reincarnation became 21 years old. They told him that in no way did they intend to ignore their duty and so, under no circumstances, would they consider handing over their responsibility to anyone other than the XVIIth Karmapa himself. In particular, they refused to accept the illegal and disrespectful way things had been managed lately.

Seeing that he was getting nowhere with his threats, Tenzin Chonyi decided to apply more concrete pressure. He warned the two trustees that if they did not deliver their agreement to the resolution, they would be immediately forced to resign from the trust. Sherab Gyaltshen and Jigdral Tashi Densapa, in a restrained manner, simply asked their uninvited guest to leave.

A group of settlers, coming from Tibet, had collected a sum of about Rs. 2.51 lakhs. This amount formed the corpus of the Karmapa Charitable Trust in 1961. The income, profit or any reasonable portion of it was meant to be spent for the benefit of the Karmapa's followers.

Sikkim had not merged with India at that time. Therefore, the deed of the trust was signed in the Indian Residency, i.e. office of the Political Officer for India at Gangtok in Sikkim. At that time, the registered office of the trust was at 142, Rashbehari Avenue, Calcutta (India), which was perhaps the residence of Ashok Chand Burman, an Indian industrialist and a closeconfidante of the XVIth Karmapa. Burman had also been named as one of the trustees by the XVIth Karmapa.

The XVIth Karmapa was the sole trustee. The deed of the trust specifically mentioned:

And it is hereby declared that in case of the mahanirvana (death) of the trustee, i.e. His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, as stated hereinabove, his successors in office, i.e. His Holiness the next Karmapa, i.e. the 17th Karmapa, shall become the trustee. During the intervening period of the mahanirvana of H.H. the 16th Karmapa and the reincarnation of the next Karmapa, i.e. the 17th Karmapa when reincarnated, and if he is below the age of 21 years, then till the time when His Holiness the 17th Karmapa attains the age of 21 years, the seven persons named below and, in case of their death or refusal to act as trustees, their heirs, legal representatives or successors in office, as the case may be and as provided hereinafter, shall become the trustees for the management of the 'Karmapa Charitable Trust¹ with all the power of the trustees as vested by this deed of trust.

The seven persons in the trust were: Rai Bahadur Tashi Dadul Densapa, Ashok Chand Burman, Gyan Jyoti Kansakar, Sherab Gyaltshen, Dhamchoe Youngdu, Jewon Takpoo (Dragpa) Yulgyal (Tobga Rinpoche) and Gyonpu Namgyal.

The deed of the trust further specified:

It is also provided that in case of the death of any of the future trustees No. 1 to 4 named hereinabove dying before or after the mahanirvana of His Holiness, i.e. the 16th Karmapa, and before His Holiness the next Karmapa, i.e. His Holiness the 17th Karmapa is reincarnated and attains the age of 21 years, then their legal male heirs by the principle of primogeniture shall hereditarily become the trustees in place of the deceased trustees. And it is also declared that in case of any of the heirs of the future trustees Nos. 1 to 4 refusing to act as trustees, the other trusteeswill be entitled to nominate a competent male member of the family of the deceased future trustee as aforesaid as one of the trustees, and if no such person is available, then anybody else that the other future trustees as aforesaid may think fit and proper to act as trustee, in place of the trustees so dying or refusing to act.

If is further declared hereby that in the case of the death of any of the trustees named from Nos. 5 to 7 hereinabove representing the Karmapa sect (order), before or after mahanirvana of His Holiness the 16th Karmapa and/or before His Holiness the next Karmapa, i.e. His Holiness the 17th Karmapa is reincarnated and takes charge of the 'Karmapa Charitable Trust¹ after attaining the age of 21 years, the members of the Karmapa sect of Tibetan Buddhism will elect the required member or members of their sect as vacancy may arise (amongst the trustees Nos. 5 to 7) to act as trustees in place of the deceased trustees. Provided that the trustee or trustees so appointed in place of any or all of the future trustees named hereinafter from 1 to 7 will have the same power or rights as if he or they was or were originally appointed the trustee or trustees under these presents.

The original deed said, "His Holiness the Gyalwa Karmapa Lama Dharma Chakra Centre Trust Rumtek (sic) Sikkim." In the rectified version "Dharma Chakra Centre Trust Runtek" was replaced by the words: "Supreme Head of the Dharma Chakra Centre of Rumtek in the state of Sikkim."

Rai Bahadur Tashi Dadul Densapa has been succeeded by his son Jigdral Tashi Densapa (he resigned but his resignation letter was not accepted); Ashok Chand Burman resigned; Shamar Rinpoche was adopted by the rest of trustees to replace him; Gyan Jyoti is living in Nepal and Sherab Gyaltshen is living at Gangtok. After the death of Dhamchoe Youngdu in December 1982, Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche was adopted as trustee. In 1993, Jamgon Kongtrul too died in an accident. Jewon Takpoo Yulgyal, son of the sister of the XVI Karmapa, and General Secretary of the Rumtek administration as well as the trust, diedin 1997. Gyonpu Namgyal died. He was replaced by Situ Rinpoche.

The present composition of the trust is: Gyan Jyoti Kansakar (Nepal), Sherab Gyaltshen (Gangtok), Shamar Rinpoche and Situ Rinpoche. Three seats (Nos. 5 to 7) are vacant.

At present, Situ Rinpoche is banned from entering Sikkim and Darjeeling in West Bengal while the Sikkim government has imposed restrictions on the visit of Shamar Rinpoche to the Rumtek monastery.

Tobga Rinpoche admitted in 1996 that during the lifetime of the XVIth Karmapa and for the immediate years after his death, the trust, had remained inactive and widely forgotten. The Karmapa was the sole trustee. Therefore there was no need to activate the trust. It was only after the death of Dhamchoe Yongdu, the old General Secretary, in 1983, with the financial crisis looming over Rumtek that the new administration had dug out the corresponding documents, and consequently, the trust's seven-member board, as per the deed of the trust, came to life.

In April 1984, the first meeting of the trust after the death of the XVIth Karmapa was held at the Rumtek monastery. The meeting resolved that the Rumtek monastery affairs would be conducted on the basis of the deed of the Karmapa Charitable Trust. Generally, the trustees were to meet twice a year. Funds were provided liberally by Shamar Rinpoche. He and Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche contributed greatly to accomplish the intentions of the XVIth Karmapa. During the same period, Situ and Gyaltshab Rinpoches devoted themselves to construct their own monasteries.

"When the dragon's thunder is heard, peacocks cry out in joy," Situ Rinpoche wrote in a letter in 1992 to three other regents, the Rumtek Monks' Association, Tobga Rinpoche and others in Rumtek village. The trustees took note of it and convened an emergency meeting. They concluded that letters of this kind were not acceptable as a lot of expectations were generated. Previously there had been excitement over the inner and outer letters. If Situ Rinpoche had substantial material to communicate, everyone would be overjoyed. But if not, letters of this kind would not do much good. The trustees asked TobgaRinpoche to convey these sentiments to Situ Rinpoche, which he did.

In his capacity as General Secretary, Tobga Rinpoche wrote a letter to the trustees as the situation was a pressing one. He stated:

Ever since the meeting on 19 March 1992, Situ and Gyaltshab Rinpoches have chosen to ignore the Karmapa Charitable Trust. Situ Rinpoche, being a trustee himself, has consistently failed to inform the General Secretary and the fellow trustees of the historical steps he was taking and has acted as though the governing body did not exist. Legally, however, nothing could be undertaken on behalf of the (Karma) Kagyu order without the trust's formal consent.

The letter was later made public. The General Secretary recalled that the trust had always been under the impression that the XVIth Karmapa's testimonial letter was found in 1986 in his relic box, as declared by the four regents. However, now this letter had become invalid because of another letter produced by Situ Rinpoche. The trust, however, was not informed about this latest document. In order to satisfy the international following of the Gyalwa Karmapa, the General Secretary added, Situ Rinpoche's letter needed to be tested by reliable methods. Since this was not being done, the trustees had to find an alternative to prove the authenticity of the XVIIth Karmapa so recognised.

Tobga Rinpoche also stressed that the trust had to take measures to safeguard all the valuable articles that the XVIth Karmapa had brought from Tibet with such great effort. It was extremely important that those treasures be prevented from falling into the wrong hands. "As the Gyalwa Karmapa trustees, we must see to it that the real Karmapa be enthroned," the General Secretary concluded. He also counseled that at this juncture it was not advisable to make any changes either in the policies of the trust or the composition of the board of trustees.

In November 92, the trustees assembled in. New Delhi. Sherab Gyaltshen was the sole absentee. In the meeting, Tobga Rinpoche remarked that many letters about the Karmapa'sreincarnation were sent out. Surprisingly, the contents of these letters always added up to the same, even though they were said to be sent by different organisations and individuals. And coincidentally, or perhaps deliberately they all seemed to be about the proceedings of reincarnation of the Karmapa. All the letters demanded "that the proceedings be speeded up and led by Situ Rinpoche in collaboration with the Dalai Lama as had been done in the past." Tobga Rinpoche said:

"Before the meeting I had written to Shamar Rinpoche to convey what I just said. Copies of my communique were also sent to three other rinpoches. In my letter I had asked if the four rinpoches were no longer willing to shoulder the responsibility for the proceedings together. During the meeting I also told the others that we must be clear about this. I had pointed out that the letters implied that the reincarnation proceedings were not being speeded up because of a certain individual who attempted to obstruct the proceedings. If there were such an individual, he would be an enemy of the dharma. Therefore, we must know who this person is."

The four rinpoches responded in writing. They wrote that they still collectively shouldered the responsibility for finding the Karmapa's reincarnation and that there was no individual who tried to obstruct the proceedings.

As matters stand today, the trust, according to the supporters of Situ Rinpoche, is a defunct body 'as its purpose has already been served'. They assert that it was formed by settlers, who were entitled to take back the money invested in the trust. According to Situ's supporters, majority of them had retracted their contribution in the late XVIth Karmapa's lifetime. Prominent among the contributors was the Tsurphu labrang, the main administrative body formed by the founder of the order, the First Karmapa. The late XVIth Karmapa had signed on behalf of this body in the deed of the trust.

They prefer to forget the other purpose of the trust, i.e. management during the intervening period between the death of the XVIth Karmapa and his reincarnation, which has been specifically given in the deed of the trust. Shamar Rinpoche insists that the aim of the trust is to maintain all the movable and immovable properties left by the late Karmapa, which languish under the illegal occupation of usurpers aided by the Sikkim state government. Ironically, the Situ group wanted to infuse its men in this trust even though it described the trust as a dead horse.

Shortly after the Karmapa's death, there was a proposal to establish a new trust. According to Tobga Rinpoche:

"Some aspects of the administrative work changed. The tax-laws and so on were not the same. It became necessary to create a new trust as the administration was not able to locate the legal documents of the old trust. Thus the members in the administration traveled to Delhi for this work. This trust was to include the four regents, ten other persons and myself. But just as we were about to register the trust with the Indian authorities, the documents of the old trust were found.

The late Karmapa had also constituted another trust in April 1967 to purchase the land for the present monastery. It was named Karmai Sheydup Chho-Khor-Ling Trust (Dharma Chakra Centre Trust). Only two out of the nine trustees are alive. They are Dungche Dr Ugyen Jigmee and Dungche Tenzin, Personal Secretary to the late XVIth Karmapa. Dungche is a Tibetan word which means secretary. Tenzin, previously the Deputy General Secretary of the main administrative body, has been elevated as the General Secretary by the Situ Rinpoche and his supporters. Though there is a provision for the election of trustees by the religious followers of the Karmapa, the vacancies have not been filled so far."

The deed of this trust specifically mentioned:

After the passing away of the present Holiness Gyalwa Karmapa, and until the next avatar (reincarnation) attains the age of 18, the powers exercisable by his Holiness under this trust will devolve upon the successive 'Karmai choo-ghar theipa or the occupant of the Karmapa sect (order) and the private secretary of His Holiness Karmapa jointly.

An extraordinary meeting of the 'Settlers of the Karmapa Charitable Trust' held on Saturday, 12 December 1992, at the registered office of the trust at Rumtek was presided over by Lodro Tharchin, teacher of Situ Rinpoche. No-confidence was expressed in Jewon Takpoo Yulgyal, a trustee and General Secretary of the trust for not recognising the candidate (of Situ Rinpoche) as the reincarnation of the Karmapa. It was also decided to reconstitute the board of trustees. A resolution read:

Resolved that the present board of trustees be and is hereby dissolved with immediate effect and the following persons are appointed as the new trustees with immediate effect: 1. Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche, 2. Kenting Tai Situ Rinpoche 3. The Goshir Gyaltshab Rinpoche, 4. Bokar Rinpoche, 5.Tenzin Namgyal, 6.Tenzin Chonyi and 7.Kunzang Sherab.

It was also resolved that the reconstituted board of trustees would have the same powers and duties and would be governed by the same deed of trust dated 23 August 1961 as the outgoing board. Through a resolution, the assembly treated a letter from Topga Rinpoche to Situ Rinpoche refusing to recognise the latter's candidate as the Karmapa as the former's resignation letter.

Another resolution read:

Resolved that Jewon Takpoo Yulgyal ceases to remain general secretary of the trust with immediate effect and that Tenzin Namgyal has been unanimously elected general secretary of the Karmapa Charitable Trust with immediate effect.

The third and the last resolution stated:

Resolved that all the bank accounts of the Karmapa Charitable Trust shall hereinafter be operated by (any two of) the trustees as under: (1) Tenzin Namgyal, (2) Kunzang Sherab and (3) Goshir Gyaltshab Rinpoche. If any of the above have to go out of station for any period of time, he may authorise any of the other trustees to operate the bank accounts on his behalf during the period of his absence.

After two days, on 14 December the copy of the said resolutions was sent to the Secretary, Land Revenue Department of the Government of Sikkim for the purpose of record-keeping.

Meanwhile, letters of query about the new trust started pouring from various towns in Europe in the office of the Government of Sikkim as well as to the trustees, as per the deed of the trust.

Panic swept the Buddhist world. On 18 January 1993, the said Lodro Tharchin, wrote another letter to the Land Revenue Department, withdrawing his earlier letter and the copy of the resolutions. He further requested for the return of the submitted papers. The government decided not to process the case for registration but pleaded its inability to return the submitted papers as they were now part of the official records.

On 1 March 1993, the Commissioner-cum-Secretary of the Land Revenue Department wrote to Herbert Giller of West Germany and admitted that a request had been made by certain parties for a change in the existing trust. But the parties concerned subsequently withdrew their request for registration of change of the trust. "In view of the withdrawal, the state government has not registered any new trust nor recognised any change in the original trust existing as the Karmapa Charitable Trust," the government official added.

The Chief Secretary to the Sikkim Government in 1997 in his confidential report to three senior functionaries of the Government of India wrote:

While the regents are responsible for the religious affairs of Rumtek, these are the trustees who are really the inheritors of the trust, constituted by the sixteenth Gyalwa Karmapa. Three of the regents were members of the trust. One of them died in an accident. After the so-called discovery of the reincarnate in Tibet, Situ Rinpoche has been avoiding attending the trust meetings and in any case after 1993 his entry to India has been banned. He, therefore, seems to operate through Gyaltshab Rinpoche who continues to be in Rumtek. For some strange reasons though he is also a Tibetan refugee like Shamar and Situ Rinpoches, Gyaltshab's permit to remain in Sikkim is renewed by the state government year after year whereas Shamar Rinpoche has not been allowed to enter Sikkim for some time now. ... .the legally established trust exists and was functioning in a normal fashion until the controversy erupted in 1992. Even thereafter, in spite of the trust being, for all practical purposes, boycotted by Situ Rinpoche, it continued to meet right until 1995. The resolutions taken by the trust from time to time have appealed for moderation, for settlement of dispute by adopting the middle path and dialogue. The efforts of the trust for bringing about a rapprochement have been dismissed somewhat derisively by the Joint Action Committee, possibly inspired by Situ Rinpoche. In fact, the Joint Action Committee seems to have organised something called Kagyu International Conference and had gone to the extent of calling for the resignation of the trustees. They also made an effort to replace the present trustees with a set of their own but this was not successful. Because of the possession of the monastery by Situ group the trustees have not been able to occupy their official position within the monastery nor have they been able to perform their functions in a proper manner.

The Chief Secretary added:

Kunzang Sherab, an ex-bureaucrat not particularly known for integrity or efficiency and who for some time was the Secretary of the Ecclesiastical Department of the Government of Sikkim; Namkha Gyaltsen, an MLA who represents theSangha constituency, Sonam Topden, younger brother of Karma Topden, Congress Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) and a few others formed the Joint Action Committee.

Kunzang Sherab is the Chairman of the Joint Action Committee of all Sikkim Buddhist organisations. In the campaign to install the 'Chinese' nominee as the Karmapa, Head of the (Karma) Kagyu order of Tibetan Buddhism, the Congress member of the Rajya Sabha from Sikkim, Karma Topden, has also reportedly joined hands with Kunzang Sherab. Sonam Topden, younger brother of the Congress MP is the General Secretary of the Joint Action Committee. The Topden family reportedly nurses a grudge because a child of the family was not recognised as reincarnation of one rinpoche despite efforts by Situ Rinpoche, the leader of the group campaigning to install the 'Chinese' nominee.

Three prominent families in Sikkim, namely, Lharipa, Topden and Pasang Namgyal, are also allegedly hand in glove with him. It is alleged that this body (JAC) is involved in unleashing a virulent campaign against the group, which has refused to recognise the 'Chinese' nominee as reincarnation of the Karmapa.

In March 1992, during a meeting of Situ and Gyaltshab Rinpoches with the then Sikkim government headed by Nar Bahadur Bhandari, the representatives of the so-called 'joint action committee' were also present. After the meeting, the secretary of Gyaltshab Rinpoche commented, "the Joint Action Committee has especially been formed to protect the interests of the Sikkim Government, the Tibetan government-in-exile of the Dalai Lama and the government of China. That is why it is called Joint Action Committee."

It was on behalf of the Joint Action Committee that the monks attacked the Rumtek monastery on 2 August 1993. It is in the name of the Committee that the monastery has been occupied. In 1994, when Nar Bahadur Bhandari lost the elections, the Joint Action Committee shifted its allegiance to the Sikkim Democratic Front of Pawan Kumar Chamling but the latter did not welcome its office bearers. The Joint Action Committee later switched its allegiance to the Congress.

The Chief Secretary said:

The Joint Action Committee has been keeping the (reincarnation) issue alive and influencing the local population in Sikkim to subscribe to the view that the reincarnated Karmapa in Tibet is the only real reincarnate. The group has been able to capture the loyalty of the local Bhutia-Lepcha population to a large extent because of the fact that its members do not hesitate to use strong-arm tactics whenever necessary.

They are also supported by some local politicians such as Thukchok Lachungpa who is currently with the Congress but was earlier with the Sikkim Sangram Parishad (of Bhandari) and who specialises in agitational politics. It is due primarily to the Joint Action Committee that an ugly situation was created in the monastery itself, as a consequence of which two groups fought each other and the group of lamas owing allegiance to Shamar Rinpoche was physically thrown out of the Rumtek monastery. This group of lamas has been given shelter near the monastery but not allowed to enter it.

The presence of Gyaltshab Rinpoche and the fact that the group owing allegiance to Situ Rinpoche is in physical possession of the monastery has enabled them to claim that the monastery already belongs to the reincarnate of the XVIth Gyalwa Karmapa from Tibet and that he be brought from Tibet and enthroned in Rumtek. The Joint Action Committee keeps issuing pamphlets, monograms, cassettes — all calculated to establish that the Tibetan reincarnation is the only correct reincarnation. The propaganda has no doubt had an impact on the local population. Attempts by Shamar Rinpoche's followers to enter the monastery even for the purpose of worship have been beaten back by use of force by the group in occupation of the monastery. It needs to be highlighted that the local bureaucracy and the police have also been heavily influenced by this strong propaganda.

Discussing the role of the state government, the Chief Secretary cpmtomued:

It has been reported that the then Chief Minister Nar Bahadur Bhandari had developed links with Situ Rinpoche and his attitude towards the Rumtek controversy was, to a large extent, influenced by the Situ group. Reports also indicate that his election campaign was financed by Situ Rinpoche. It is possible that Bhandari wanted to keep his hold over the Bhutia/Lepcha voters who he thought were inclined towards Tai Situ group. Bhandari's own political history indicates that he was opposed to the merger of Sikkim with India and he has not hesitated from taking anti-India stances whenever it suits his political convenience. What needs to be highlighted is that when the controversy erupted and developed into a law and order problem, the Sikkim Government officers, who went to the monastery to control what was basically a law and order situation, seem to have exceeded their authority. Whether they did this because of express instructions by Bhandari or not is unclear but having arrived at the site to control the situation, created by warring groups of lamas, aided generously by outside elements reportedly gathered by the members of the Joint Action Committee, the then Home Secretary and the Inspector General of Police seem to have also got hold of the keys of the monastery. They did not care to make an inventory off the articles in the monastery. What is more important is that the keys were handed over not to the duly constituted trust or any of its trustees but to Tai Situ group. By this act of the State Government, intentionally or otherwise, the possession of the monastery was handed over to SituJ Rinpoche group which since then is prohibiting the other group from entering the monastery. The trustees have not been able to enter the monastery either and perform their duties and have been writing to the state government to take corrective action in the matter and Shamar Rinpoche has been trying to impress upon the government that they should also be given access to the monastery. An attempt was no doubt made to get the monks of Shamar group back into the monastery but in the face of violent opposition from Situ group from within the monastery, it was given up. The trustees have not met since 1995 but the Shamar group is now attempting to take recourse to legal remedies. The state government has received a notice from a legal firm, on behalf of the majority of the trustees, asking for restoration of possession of the monastery and its properties along with a list of articles that are supposed to be a part of the monastery.

The Bhutia and Lepcha communities comprise different clannish groups in Sikkim. Top on the social rung are the Kazis, or landowners, traditionally the noble families of the state. The Kazis, for centuries, have exerted a great deal of influence in the region during the centuries-old dynasty of the Chogyals. Leaning on the middle rung stand the Babus, a clan of usually educated members but traditionally subordinate to the Kazis. The lowest rung is of commoners. They are usually the uneducated segment of the Bhutia-Lepcha community and more often than not exploited by politicians.

Interestingly, successive Chief Ministers, Nar Bahadur Bhandari and Pawan Kumar Chamling, are supporting the group headed by Situ Rinpoche. In the 32-member state assembly, 12 seats are reserved for the Buddhist Bhutia-Lepcha communities, besides one seat for the sangha. Therefore, every political leader in the state continues to meddle in all affairs, including religious affairs of the Buddhists.

Over the past 15 years, the Babus have garnered support from the commoners and pushed Kazis to the side. In the beginning, the Topden family of Karma Topden and Kunzang Sherab threw their weight behind Nar Bahadur Bhandari against L. D. Kazi, the first chief Minister of the state, who was instrumental in bringing about the accession of Sikkim to India.

Similar is the role of the Derge Association based in Kathmandu. The steering committee of this group comprises Dhonyod Gyago, Kelsang Chimi and Dontsay Karge, all associated with the monastery of Situ Rinpoche situated in Himachal Pradesh.