A senior Indian minister has said that only the Dalai Lama and the organisation he has set up have the authority to identify his successor as the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism, in a rare comment contradicting rival China's long-held position.

India has for long stated that the process of naming the successor is a long standing tradition that the Dalai Lama undertakes and no third party has a role to play here.

Dalai Lama said the 600-year-old institution will continue and only his office can decide his successor; China insisted the process must follow its Chinese regulations