The Dalai Lama is to be felicitated on Saturday by the Gandhi Peace Foundation, the All-Party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet and the Core Group for Tibetan Cause for receiving the US Congressional gold medal, the highest civilian award in the United States.
The top secret letter is being viewed as a clear signal that New Delhi does not want to rub the Chinese on the wrong side, especially at a time when Sino-Indian relations are on a high following Congress party president Sonia Gandhi's recent visit to Beijing.
The letter, sent by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar, made it clear that the felicitation is 'not in conformity with the country's foreign policy' and hence did not warrant the presence of any member of the Cabinet.
Former prime minister Inder Kumar Gujral is to felicitate the Dalai Lama while Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit is listed among the speakers. Dikshit too is unlikely to attend.
