NEW DELHI: Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India, and this is a self-evident fact, asserted Indian govt as China reiterated its claim over the northeast Indian state following controversy over the detention of an Arunachal Pradesh woman at Shanghai airport.No amount of denial by the Chinese side is going to change this indisputable reality, said the ministry of extrenal affairs (MEA) in a statement on Tuesday. “The issue of the detention has been taken up strongly with the Chinese side. Chinese authorities have still not been able to explain their actions, which are in violation of several conventions governing international air travel,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, adding that the action by Chinese also violated their own regulations that allow visa-free transit up to 24 hours for nationals of all countries.The ministry was responding to the Chinese foreign ministry’s remarks on the “arbitrary” detention of an Indian citizen from Arunachal Pradesh, who was holding a valid passport and was transiting through Shanghai International Airport on her onward travel to Japan.Denying that the woman was detained or harassed, the Chinese foreign ministry had earlier said border checks on people entering and exiting a country and carrying out law enforcement according to the “specific situation of the entry or exit is the usual practice” of border enforcement authorities of countries. Law enforcement was impartial and non-abusive: China | page 14India on Monday lodged a strong protest with China for the treatment meted out to the Indian.”Zangnan is China’s territory. The Chinese side has never recognized the so-called ‘Arunachal Pradesh’ illegally set up by India,” said the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson. “China’s border inspection authorities carried out checks in accordance with laws and regulations, the law enforcement was impartial and non-abusive, the lawful rights and interests of the person concerned were fully protected, no compulsory measures were taken on her, and there was no so-called detaining or harassing,” he added.According to Beijing, the airline provided resting facilities and meals to the woman who was transiting in China. In its protest, India had stressed that the passenger was detained on ludicrous grounds as Arunachal was Indian territory and its residents were perfectly entitled to hold Indian passports. Govt also emphasised that at a time when both sides were working on restoring normalcy, actions like this introduced unnecessary obstructions to the process.
