DHARAMSHALA: The US State Department yesterday released a press statement to condole the death of Tulku Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a prominent Tibetan religious teacher and political prisoner, who died while serving life imprisonment in a Chinese prison on Sunday, 12 July.

“We are saddened to learn that Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a Tibetan lama who has been a political prisoner since 2002, has died in prison. We express our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and supporters,” John Kirby, a State Department spokesperson, said in a press statement on 13 July.

“The United States had consistently urged China to release Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, most recently out of concern for his health. We hope Chinese authorities will investigate and make public the circumstances surrounding his death”

“We urge Chinese authorities to return his body to his family or to his monastery so that customary religious rituals can be properly performed,” he added.