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New Delhi. India has taken a tough stance on the misbehavior with the woman from Arunachal Pradesh at Shanghai Airport. The Foreign Ministry has bluntly told China to respect international rules. The ministry has ‘expected’ from Beijing that no Indian citizen will be targeted in future. Arbitrary detention or harassment of Indians passing through Chinese airports will not be tolerated. This strict statement has been given by Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
Arunachal woman stopped for 18 hours: This matter is from last month. Prema Wangjom Thongdok, a resident of Arunachal Pradesh, was going from London to Japan on 21 November. His connecting flight was from Shanghai. There the Chinese immigration officials stopped him. It is alleged that the authorities refused to accept his Indian passport. He argued that Arunachal Pradesh is ‘part of China’. Prema was kept in custody for about 18 hours, even though her stopover was only for three hours. India has called it a clear violation of rules.
Advisory issued for Indians: Randhir Jaiswal said that we hope that China will assure that such incidents will not happen again. The Chinese side should follow the rules of air travel. The ministry has also advised Indian citizens. If they are traveling to or taking transit from China, then take ‘appropriate precautions’. China’s own rules allow visa-free transit for up to 24 hours. But in this matter China flouted its own rules. India has again reiterated that Arunachal Pradesh is and will remain an integral part of the country.
