China doubles down on claim over Arunachal; denies Indian woman harassed at Shanghai airport: Here's what we know

An Indian woman from Arunachal Pradesh has claimed that she was harassed at Shanghai Airport by airport authorities who claimed that Arunachal is a part of China and questioned her why she was carrying an Indian passport.

China denied the allegation of the woman being harassed, and now India has responded to Beijing's claims of Arunachal being a part of China in a strongly worded reply from the Ministry of External Affairs.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, We have seen statements made by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding 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."

“Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India, and this is a self-evident fact. No amount of denial by the Chinese side is going to change this indisputable reality,” he added.

“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. The actions by the Chinese authorities also violate their own regulations that allow visa free transit up to 24 hours for nationals of all countries,” the statement added.

What really happened

Pema Wangjom Thongdok, a UK-based Indian citizen who was travelling from London to Japan on 21 November, claimed that her three-hour scheduled layover turned into a traumatising ordeal after immigration personnel declared her passport "invalid" solely because it listed Arunachal Pradesh as her birthplace.

Thongdok, in a number of social media posts, claimed that Chinese immigration officials detained her for around 18 hours on grounds that her passport was "invalid" since she was born in Arunachal Pradesh.

After the ordeal, Thongdok said that she got connected to the Indian consulate through a friend based out of UK.

What Arunachal CM Pema Khandu said

Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu has issued a strong message against the discrimination shown to Thongdok.

"I am deeply shocked by the unacceptable treatment of Ms. Prema Wangjom Thongdok, a proud Indian citizen from Arunachal Pradesh, by Chinese immigration authorities at Shanghai Pudong Airport. Subjecting her despite a valid Indian passport to humiliation and racial mockery is appalling. Arunachal Pradesh is, and will always be an integral part of India. Any insinuation otherwise is baseless and offensive," Khandu said in a post on X.

"Such conduct violates international norms and is an affront to the dignity of our citizens. I am confident that the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India will take up this matter urgently that such incidents are not repeated," he further added.

China never acknowledged the so-called Arunachal Pradesh: Chinese spokesperson

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning has denied claims that Thongdok, who was travelling from London to Japan on 21 November, was harassed by Chinese officials, and nor was she detained.

Thongdok was also provided a place to rest, and was served food and drinks, as per Mao.

"We learnt that China's border inspection authorities have gone through the whole process according to the laws and regulations and fully protected the lawful rights and interests of the person concerned," she claimed.

However, she did insist that Arunachal Pradesh is a part of China, going as far as to say, "Zangnan is China's territory. China never acknowledged the so-called Arunachal Pradesh illegally set up by India.”

China refers to Arunachal Pradesh as Zangnam, or South Tibet.

How India reacted

India lodged a strong protest against the treatment meted out to Thongdok in both Delhi and Beijing, as per an ANI source.

The source told ANI that the Shanghai Indian consulate took up the matter and extended their fullest assistance to Thongdok.

"It was stressed that the passenger had been detained on ludicrous grounds. Arunachal Pradesh is indisputably Indian territory, and its residents are perfectly entitled to hold and travel with Indian passports," another source told the publication.

"It has also been highlighted that the actions of the Chinese authorities are in contravention of the Chicago and Montreal Conventions relating to civil aviation," the source said.

Later, Randhir Jaiswal issued the aforementioned statement.