Tibetan exiles in Dharamshala have rejected allegations linking the Dalai Lama to Jeffrey Epstein, saying he never met the financier and warning of a China-linked disinformation campaign.
The Dalai Lama during a public engagement in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. | (@RijijuOffice X/ANI Photo)
The exiled Tibetan community in Dharamshala on Monday condemned reports and social media posts attempting to link the Dalai Lama with Jeffrey Epstein, calling the allegations baseless and politically motivated. The Dalai Lama’s office has categorically denied any connection, stating that he has never met Epstein and never authorised any interaction with him.
Community leaders said the claims resurfaced soon after news emerged of the Dalai Lama receiving a Grammy Award, arguing that the timing points to an attempt to defame the Tibetan spiritual leader.
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Youdon Aukatsang, a member of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, told ANI she was “really disheartened and sad” by the allegations. “There is nothing that links in with Jeffrey Epstein at all,” she said, adding that those spreading the claims should apologise.
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“I think it’s really a handiwork of pro-Chinese propaganda, whether they are Russians or Chinese or whoever is working in collusion with China to defame His Holiness,” Aukatsang said. Referring to the Grammy news, she added that soon after the announcement, references to an acquaintance’s email were used to try to create a link. “There are only references and no evidence. They should show the evidence. And we are 101 per cent sure that this is a totally false and baseless allegation.”
Tenzin Lobsang, the general secretary of the Tibetan Youth Congress, said the group had examined the material being cited. “We have gone through the whole file, and that has been mentioned 169 times, but the reality is that His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, has nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein,” he told ANI, noting that the Dalai Lama’s private office has already issued a denial.
Lobsang alleged that the information campaign originated abroad and was amplified by state-linked outlets. “The moment the Dalai Lama receives the Grammy Award and the first information spreads from the Russian state agency, it mentions the name of the Dalai Lama 169 times and tries to establish a link with Jeffrey Epstein. And then that’s also used by the Chinese state media,” he said, calling it a deliberate effort to spread disinformation.
He added that some individuals may have used the Dalai Lama’s name without authorisation. “Some individuals have used the name of the Dalai Lama, but there is no evidence and no link. They used His Holiness’ name in their resume to reach out to Jeffrey Epstein for some sort of financial aid,” Lobsang said. “We don’t know what their intention was, but they used His Holiness as a reference, as a backup or as image-building.”
On Sunday, the Dalai Lama’s office dismissed the reports circulating online. “We can unequivocally confirm that His Holiness has never met Jeffrey Epstein or authorised any meeting or interaction with him by anyone on His Holiness’s behalf,” a press statement issued from Dharamshala said.
In a post on X, the office reiterated the position, noting that “some recent media reports and social media posts concerning ‘Epstein files’ are attempting to link His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Jeffrey Epstein.”
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