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The idea itself was not invented by Notovitch, French author Louis Jacolliot was the first to propose the idea in 1869 (claiming that Jesus and Krishna are one and the same) and François Laouenan was first to invent "sources" for the idea in 1885. Notovitch, however claimed to find a primary source proving Jesus visit.

I. Short bio

Nicholas Notovitch was born in 1858 in Jewish family, but converted to Russian Orthodoxy at some point and for the rest of his life was a pious adherent of this church and firm Russophile. He visited India and Tibet in 1887, maybe as Russian spy and soon after returning relocating to Paris. Here he published "Life of Issa" and number of other books. Upon returning to Russia in 1895 he was arrested and sent to Siberia. The reason, by all accounts, was "Life of Isa", but I have some doubts 'bout it- including the exile itself, as in a few years back in west Europe pumping out new books. He probably was just arrested for a short time. In 1916 he simply dropped out of the radar and there is not nothing more to say about the life of Nicholas Notovitch.

his other works have nothing to do with esoteric. After his legal problems he wrote novel Un Française en Sibérie (1897), but rest of his work is political: L’empereur Alexandre IIIet son entourage (1893), L’empereur Nicolas II et la politique russe (1895), L’Europe et l’Egypte (1898), La Russie et l’alliance anglaise (1907).

II. Problems with "La vie inconnue de Jesus Christ " (1894)

I. a. Travels and discovery

First part of the book is description of author travels and story of founding the manuscript of "Life of Saint Issa, Best of the Sons of Man".

1. Notovich claims that he learned about Saint Issa, much earlier than he found the book, in entirely another monastery. Meaning that Saint Issa is established figure in Lamaistic Buddhism, at least to the clergy. So there should be more references to him, albeit in the last 128 years not a single was found.
2. Notovich lied about his injury, Record from Leh hospital show that he had toothache. Not of much importance per se, but says something about author.
3. The manuscript described as " two large bound volumes", indicating western style book-binding (invented centuries after Jesus death) and not Tibetan xylograph. Whats more interesting, another westerner- Elisabeth Caspari- also claimed to have been show ancient manuscript about Jesus in the very same monastery in 1939. She even made a photo. That shows typical Tibetan xylograph.
4. Notovich claims that he debated chief Lama of Himis monastery about similarities between Buddhism and Egyptian, Assyrian and Jewish religions.
5. According to book, the same chief Lama described himself and his monks as "yellow monks". That is analogous to archbishop of Milan calling himself Lutheran.
6. Notovich's interpreter was Kashmiri shikari- a local peasant, who realistically aside his mother tongue could have know some Urdu and English, thus making us question how Notovich conversed about "the attenuation of the divine principle" with a priest who spoke only Tibetan.
7. The original text, bound volumes or xylographic was never seen again. As in many such cases we have to take writers word that he seen such document.
8. The origin story of the text is dubious as hell. Claim is that soon after Jesus death, Buddhist monks learned about about it from traveling Jewish merchants. We are required to believe that said merchants found this to be a story worth telling ("this strange foreign priest will love to hear about a routine execution of some troublemaker in the city he never heard of" seems to be a logic here). And then, Buddhist priest somehow recognized that this Yeshua bin Yosep is in fact the same guy who lived in this monastery nearly a two decades prior.
9. The best part. After Notovich published his book, most prominent orientologist of that time Max Müller wrote to the chief lama of Himis monastery. His colleague British J. Archibald Douglas traveled there and pretty much interrogated the poor priest.

Here is testimony, that chief lama of Himis monastery gave under his signature:

[...]

Question 3. Have you or any of the Buddhist monks in this monastery ever seen here a European with an injured leg?

Answer 3. No, not during the last fifteen years.

Question 4. Have you or any of your monks ever shown any Life of Issa to any sahib, and allowed him to copy and translate the same?

Answer 4. There is no such book in the monastery, and during my term of office no sahib has been allowed to copy or translate any of the manuscripts in the monastery.

Question 5. Are you aware of the existence of any book in any of the Buddhist monasteries of Tibet bearing on the life of Issa?

Answer 5. I have been for forty-two years a Lama, and am well acquainted with all the well-known Buddhist books and manuscripts, and I have never heard of one which mentions the name of Issa, and it is my firm and honest belief that none such exists. I have inquired of our principal Lamas in other monasteries of Tibet, and they are not acquainted with any books or manuscripts which mention the name of Issa.

Question 6. M. Nicolas Notovitch, a Russian gentleman who visited your monastery between seven and eight years ago, states that you discussed with him the religions of the ancient Egyptians, Assyrians, and the people of Israel.

Answer 6. I know nothing whatever about the Egyptians, Assyrians, and the people of Israel, and do not know anything of their religions whatsoever. I have never mentioned these peoples to any sahib.

[...]

Question 10. Is the name of Issa held in great respect by the Buddhists?

Answer 10. They know nothing even of his name; none of the Lamas has ever heard it, save through missionaries and European sources.

In fact, Lama was infuriated. According to J. Archibald Douglas:

I was reading M. Notovitch's book to the Lama at the time, and he burst out with, 'Sun, sun, sun, manna mi dug!' which is Tibetan for, 'Lies, lies, lies, nothing but lies!'

[..]

in our final interview, he asked me if in Europe there existed no means of punishing a person who told such untruths.

With reference to M. Notovitch's declaration that he is going to Himis to verify the statements made in his book, I would take the liberty of earnestly advising him, if he does so, to disguise himself at least as effectually as on the occasion of his former visit. M. Notovitch will not find himself popular at Himis, and might not gain admittance, even on the pretext of having another broken leg.

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I. b. The text itself

Not really necessary at this point, I believe, but for sake of clarity lets cover some issues within the text itself:

1. Issa. It's an Arabic name for Jesus, deriving from Hebrew/Aramaic Yeshua. Translating Aramaic name to Pali, then to Tibetan is quite unlikely to result in Arabic name.

2. Name of Pontius Pilate, however was preserved with no corruptions. Somehow.

3. Text is presented in numbered verses- something that was invented in 15th century europe.

4. Brahmans educated Jesus on Vedas. Highly unlikely for Brahmans to educate a foreigner.

5. Jesus begins his life of traveling missionary by direct appointment of Buddha. Who lived five centuries prior.

6. He diligently do so among pagans of Rajputana. Pagan is utterly alien term to the Buddhist writings.

7. Jewish authorities flat out refused to persecute Jesus. Such element could be explained by Notovitch's own background, but really nothing else.

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Klafkowski P. From Russia with love. Nicolas Notovitch, Nicholas Roerich, and the myth of Jesus in India// Studia Rossica Gedanensia, 5/2018. P. 335-362.

Rice. B. N. The Apocryphal Tale of Jesus' Journey to India: Nicolas Notovitch and the Life of Saint Issa Revisited// Fakes, Forgeries, and Fictions: Writing Ancient and Modern Christian Apocrypha: Proceedings from the 2015 York University Christian Apocrypha Symposium. Edited by Tony Burke. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2017. P. 265-284.

And the original debunks by Max Müller and J. Archibald Douglas are available on tertullian.org.

I covered most of the main points from the above, but also there is a book by Louis H. Fader called "The Issa Tale That Will Not Die. Nicholas Notovitch and His Fraudulent Gospel", that I do not have, but you might want to hunt it down.