India on Tuesday rejected Chinese objection to an Indian home minister’s visit to the disputed border state of Arunachal Pradesh.
Indian External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said while responding to media over the objection raised by a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson to the visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah that objecting to such visits does not stand to reason and will not change the reality.
“We completely reject the comments made by the Chinese official spokesperson. Indian leaders routinely travel to the state of Arunachal Pradesh as they do to any other state of India,” Bagchi said.
“Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India. Objecting to such visits does not stand to reason and will not change the above reality,” he added.
Shah launched on Monday the Vibrant Villages Programme and met Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein at a village named Kibithoo, located along the border with China.
He also announced commitment of Narendra Modi’s government to the security and development of border areas.
He also said that no one can dare cast an evil eye on territorial integrity of India or try to encroach even an inch of Indian land.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that the visit of Indian official to Zangnan (South Tibet in Chinese) “violates China’s territorial sovereignty, and is not conducive to the peace and tranquility of the border situation.” Last week, Indian government had rejected Chinese efforts to rename 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh and asserted that “Arunachal Pradesh is, has been, and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India. Attempts to assign invented names will not alter this reality.” India and China are engaged in long standing territorial disputes over vast areas spanning across Indian states of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh. Bloody clashes often erupt between the border forces of both countries claiming violation of borders.
Source: Kuwait News Agency