The harassment of an Indian woman at Shanghai airport has raised concerns, as she claimed that she was not allowed to leave the airport over claims of an illegal passport. The woman from Arunachal was stopped by airport authorities who argued that since Arunachal Pradesh was part of China, her Indian passport was not valid.
Chinese authorities have denied the claims of harassment as claimed by the women. The Ministry of External Affairs has later explicitly responded to the Chinese claims on Arunachal Pradesh as part of their country. Randhir Jaiswal, the official spokesperson of the External Ministry, asked for clarification over the detention of a citizen from India who was travelling to Japan from the Shanghai Airport.
He further clarified in the same post on X that the state of Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India and nothing said from the Chinese side can change the “self-evident fact”. The statement further added that the detention issue has been discussed with the Chinese side, and they have not given a befitting statement until now. MEA also said that the action violated several international standards as well as the Chinese standards themselves, which allow a visa-free transit to citizens of every country.
Pema Wangjom Thongdok, a UK-based Indian citizen, was scheduled to take a flight to Japan from Shanghai, via travelling from London to Japan. Her three-hour halt at the airport was later turned into a nightmare when the authorities declared her passport illegal, as it listed Arunachal Pradesh as her birthplace.
She later took to social media, where she claimed that the Chinese authorities stranded her for 18 hours over an illegal passport claim. Thongdok also confirmed later that she was able to contact the Indian consulate in the UK through a friend and resolved the issue. Responding to the issue, the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh stated that the discrimination towards the lady was unfair and wrong.
In a post on X, he affirmed that the discrimination against Indian citizens was sad and unacceptable. He further said that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India and will continue to remain so.
The post further read that the act was a violation of international standards and that he was confident in the stance of the External Ministry of India.
