BEIJING - The 11th Panchen Lama, Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, is deeply loved and supported by people of all ethnic groups in Tibet, Padma Choling, chairman of the Tibet autonomous regional government said on Sunday.

He made the remarks at a press conference on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature.

The Panchen Lama goes back to Tibet every year and holds religious activities at Zhaxi Lhunbo Lamasery in Xigaze, the seat of successive Panchen Lamas, he said.

"The selection of the 11th Panchen Lama was approved by the central government through lot-drawing in 1995 in strict accordance with religious rituals and historical conventions in Tibetan Buddhism," Padma Choling said.

"The reincarnation cannot be decided by certain individuals, it must follow strict religious rituals," he said.