The meeting, held at Singh's residence, lasted for an hour. BJP sources said Singh suggested to Zhang that China find a solution to the issue by talking to the people concerned, including exiled leader Dalai Lama. He expressed concern over violence against protestors at Lhasa and said “the only way forward is a dialogue”.

While stating that India shares historical and religious ties with Tibet, Singh also pointed out that the good relations between New Delhi and Beijing should be maintained.

The sources said Zhang was very critical of Dalai Lama, accusing him of “manipulating” the violence in Tibet. Singh reportedly responded by describing Dalai Lama as “a messenger of peace and humanism”. The BJP chief told Zhang that Dalai Lama was “committed to peace and non-violence.”

Earlier, while speaking to reporters at Satna, the BJP president had called upon China to exercise “maximum restraint” while dealing with protests in Lhasa. According to reports, the BJP chief accused the UPA regime of adopting a “very weak stand on Tibet only because of pressure from the Left.” Terming it an “appeasement” of China, he said the government has no regard for the “country's honour”.

Asked to comment on the observation made by George Fernandes that the NDA Government had committed an error by recognising Tibet as a part of China, Singh said New Delhi had accepted this position in 1953 itself, during the prime ministership of Jawaharlal Nehru. “The Vajpayee Government did not commit any mistake on the issue,” he said. “It was Nehru who made a mistake on Tibet in 1953, and the successive governments have been following it,” he added.