The Tibetans in Darjeeling. Picture by Suman Tamang

Darjeeling, April 6: Exiled from Tibet, Dorjee Gyansen fought for India in the Bangladesh liberation war as a member of the Special Frontier Force, a little-known paramilitary group formed on November 14, 1962 with exiled Tibetans like him. Now, the 62-year-old ex-serviceman has decided to fight a new war for his “homeland”.

Accompanied by 11 fellow exiles, Gyansen is travelling across India on motorcycle, asking people to boycott the Olympic Games in China to protest against the manner in which Tibetans are treated there. The team-members started off from Orissa’s Chandragiri on February 9 and have already covered around 15,000km and visited 158 Indian cities,

“In 1962, I crossed over to India through Paro in Bhutan and after some time in Buxa (Dooars), I went to Dharamsala (the seat of the Tibetan Government in Exile) and later fought a war in Bangladesh. I am now settled in Chandragiri, but have come out of retirement for the cause of Tibet,” said Gyansen. The team arrived here from Kalimpong last night.

Gyansen said the group was not against the Olympics. “We just want to say that China does not deserve to host the Games on moral grounds. We are being treated as a minority in our own homeland.”

Gyansen and his friends have travelled from Kanyakumari to Dehra Dun and from Gandhinagar to Darjeeling. Team leader Namgyal Tshering said he was happy with the response of Indians.

“People in different parts of the country wanted to know if Tibet was a part of India and were not sure about its geographic location, but wherever we went, we were greeted warmly. We were even allowed to pass through Kerala when there was a general strike (February 19),” said Tshering, who is also the vice-president of the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress (Orissa).

The team began its journey before the world’s attention turned to the Tibetan cause following the Chinese crackdown on protesters in Lhasa. But the team believes that a lot still needs to be done.

The motley group mostly consists of farmers and small-time woollen garment traders and although their budget has been stretched to the limit, they are determined to complete their mission.

“We were supposed to get back to Chandragiri on April 9 and although it might take a little more time, I think we can complete the tour with the kind of help we are getting from people,” said Gyansen.

Tomorrow, the team will go to Siliguri on way to Calcutta.