The Indian defence minister said on Wednesday that Delhi would seek talks with China should the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Karmapa Lama, who fled Chinese-ruled Tibet last week, request asylum.

George Fernandes, speaking to reporters during a visit to Japan, no such request had yet been made.

The matter came up during discussions with the leader of Japan's opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DJP), Yukio Hatoyama.

Mr Fernandes said he understood the 14-year-old boy travelled to India to get religious training from the Dalai Lama, according to DJP officials.

"If it is confirmed that he is in exile, it is imperative for both countries, China and India, to discuss and consult on the matter," he was quoted as saying.

Asylum doubt

Meanwhile, the Hindu newspaper has reported that India may not grant political asylum to the Karmapa Lama.

But the paper added that Delhi was opposed to deporting the boy, and could settle for his "de-facto refugee status".

The report also said that the Indian Government had discussed the Karmapa Lama's arrival at the highest level.

China warned India on Tuesday that any move to grant the "living Buddha" asylum would violate the principle of peaceful co-existence that formed the basis of the Sino-Indian relationship.

Blow to China

The 17th Karmapa Lama is the only senior Tibetan Buddhist leader recognised by both the Dalai Lama and China, and his flight from Tibet to India is seen as a blow to China's religious policy in Tibet.

Click here to see map of the Karmapa's route

Tibet's government-in-exile, based in Dharamsala, said it hoped India would respond favourably if it sought asylum for the boy who, it added, fled Tibet to avoid religious repression and human rights abuses.

It has held a meeting on how to approach the Indian Government about the issue of asylum.

Thousands of Tibetans led by the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959, nine years after China's communist army entered Tibet and overthrew its Buddhist theocracy.

The Karmapa Lama arrived in India last week after an arduous eight-day journey by car and on foot across the Himalayas.

He has since been moved to a secure location near the headquarters of the Dalai Lama at Dharamsala, in north India.

The teenage monk escaped his Chinese guards at the 800-year-old Tsurphu monastery in central Tibet by saying he intended to go on a retreat.

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