The exiled government of Tibet is mourning veteran Indian politician and diplomat Kyabje Bakula Rinpoche, who died Tuesday at the age of 86.
Bakula Rinpoche was a member of the Indian parliament from the eastern region of Ladakh and served as India's ambassador to Mongolia for 10 years. In 2001, he was awarded Mongolia's third-highest honor, the "Polar Star," in recognition of his contributions in promoting and strengthening Indo-Mongolian relations.
Exiled Tibetan officials say he was a devoted follower of Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. As a young man, he was ordained a monk by the previous Dalai Lama after traveling to Tibet to study Buddhism in 1926.