The Tibetans in exile were protesting against the Chinese crackdown on monks in Lhasa last week. Though they have tried to storm the embassy earlier this month, this is the first time they managed to get inside. Following their earlier attempts, the Delhi Police had fortified the embassy’s walls with concertina wires and stepped up security in and around the area. The protesters, however, managed to breach the security on Friday.

As many as 36 protesters have been placed under preventive arrest, the police said.

Officers said the 10 protesters, carrying Tibetan flags and sporting yellow headband, scaled the wall near the embassy’s less-guarded visa centre.

“We had a large police presence in the area, but we were taken by surprise when the protesters tried to enter the embassy through Gate No. 7 where security was slack,” a senior officer said.

The 10 protesters were whisked away from inside the gates, after they ran around in the sprawling embassy grounds for a while.

Though there were reports of 10 Tibetans and a few police personnel receiving injuries in the clash, the police did not confirm it.

TYC general secretary Dhondup Dorjee told Newsline that they held the protest to condemn the “brutal Chinese crackdown on peaceful Tibetan protesters”.

“In the different regions of Tibet, the China Communist Party attacked peaceful Tibetan protesters who were expressing their grievances against the Chinese regime. At least 100 Tibetans had died and thousands were injured,” Dorjee said.