New Delhi, July 4 -- A day after China said that the Dalai Lama's successor would be chosen following its seal of approval, India on Thursday made its position clear on the issue, stating it was only the current spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists and the conventions established by him who could determine the next incarnation.

Union Minister for Minorities Kiren Rijiju, himself a practicing Buddhist, said this, in what is being seen as an apparent snub of the Chinese position on it. "The Dalai Lama is the most important and defining institution for Buddhists," he said, adding that, "All those who follow the Dalai Lama feel that the incarnation is to be decided by the established convention and as per the wish of the Dalai Lama himself. N...