LSN News › India

Politics · India Bureau

Buddhist body calls on Sikkim to hasten Karmapa's return to Rumtek

The Sikkim Indigenous Buddhist Lamas Association Committee has urged the state government to expedite efforts facilitating the return of the Karmapa to Rumtek monastery, a centuries-old religious seat in the region.

LSN India · 31 October 2026

Buddhist body calls on Sikkim to hasten Karmapa's return to Rumtek

The Sikkim Indigenous Buddhist Lamas Association Committee (SIBLAC) has pressed the Sikkim government to accelerate measures enabling the Karmapa's homecoming to Rumtek monastery, one of the most significant Buddhist religious centers in the northeastern state.

Rumtek monastery, located in East Sikkim, has held historical importance as a principal seat of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. The monastery's future leadership and the timing of the Karmapa's return remain matters of considerable significance to the Buddhist community in Sikkim and the broader region.

The committee's appeal reflects ongoing concerns within Sikkim's Buddhist establishment regarding the resolution of administrative and governance matters related to the monastery. SIBLAC has indicated that expediting the process would be beneficial for the religious institution and the state's Buddhist community.

The Sikkim government has not issued an immediate public response to the committee's appeal. The matter touches on the intersection of religious practice, state administration, and the management of historic cultural institutions in the region.