Tibetan leader defends Dalai Lama after ‘suck my tongue’ request to boy

A top Tibetan leader has defended The Dalai Lama after a video emerged on social media that showed him asking a child to suck his tongue.

Penpa Tsering, head of Tibet’s government-in-exile, said the spiritual leader’s actions were “innocent” after the clip sparked mass outrage around the globe.

The video, for which The 14th Dalai Lama has since apologized, show his holiness hugging an Indian boy after inviting him up on stage.

The 87-year-old then pointed to his lips, and said: “Then I think finally here also.”

He then pulled the unidentified boy’s chin and kissed him on the mouth, adding: “And suck my tongue.”

But despite the waves of criticism surrounding the video, Tsering believes it shows The Dalai Lama’s “affectionate behavior,” CNN reports.

“His holiness has always lived in sanctity, (following the life of) a Buddhist monk, including celibacy. His years of spiritual practice have gone beyond sensorial pleasures,” Tsering told reporters Thursday. “His holiness is now being labeled all kinds of names.”

He claimed that “pro-Chinese sources” ensured the video would go viral on social media, without giving evidence.

The “political angle of this incident cannot be ignored,” he added.

The Dalai Lama — a Nobel Prize recipient, who spent over 60 years in exile after being forced to flee Tibet by Chinese forces in 1959 — issued a public apology for his inappropriate exchange with the boy on Twitter Monday. 

“A video clip has been circulating that shows a recent meeting when a young boy asked His Holiness the Dalai Lama if he could give him a hug,” read the tweet. 

“His Holiness wishes to apologize to the boy and his family, as well as his many friends across the world, for the hurt his words may have caused,” the post continued. “His Holiness often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras.”

“He regrets the incident.” 

The clip has since been slammed by countless people online, including rapper Cardi B, who called out “predators” after watching the video.

“This world is full of predators,” Cardi, 30, tweeted Monday as footage of the Tibetan spiritual leader’s questionable encounter with the child circulated on Twitter. 

“They prey on the innocent. The ones who are most unknowing, our children,” the mother of two continued. 

“Predators could be our neighbors, our school teachers, even people with money, power & our churches,” the “Up” rapper added, before urging parents to “constantly talk with your kids about boundaries and what they shouldn’t allow people to do to them.”