India To China: Assure Us Our Citizens Won’t Be Harassed; MEA Issues Sharp Message
India applauds the UK’s decisive sanctions, calling them a crucial step in choking extremist financing and strengthening global security cooperation. Image courtesy: RNA
In one of its strongest statements in recent months, India has demanded explicit assurances from China that Indian citizens travelling through Chinese airports will not face harassment or arbitrary detention.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), on December 8, 2025, issued the sharp message while firmly reiterating India’s longstanding position on Arunachal Pradesh.
What did India say about Arunachal Pradesh?
Addressing the media, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stressed that “Arunachal Pradesh is, and will always remain, an integral part of India.”
The reminder came amid renewed Chinese attempts to question India’s sovereignty over the stat, a recurring flashpoint in the bilateral relationship.
What was the trigger for India’s message?
The cautionary travel advisory followed a troubling incident in November, when Prema Wangjom Thongdok, an Indian passport holder working in the UK, was stopped at Shanghai airport during a layover.
Chinese immigration officials allegedly questioned the legitimacy of her passport after objecting to her place of birth, Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing falsely claims as its territory.
Why did this incident spark outrage?
Thongdok was travelling from London to Japan and documented the ordeal on social media after she was allowed to leave China.
The incident sparked outrage, prompting New Delhi to issue a strong diplomatic demarche simultaneously in Beijing and New Delhi on November 24.
What was the MEA spokesperson’s stern message to China?
Jaiswal said India expects China to follow international aviation norms and ensure Indians are not “selectively targeted, arbitrarily detained or harassed.”
He added that Indian nationals should exercise caution while travelling to or transiting through China until Beijing provides concrete assurances.
What is the strategic context to India’s reaction?
The episode comes at a sensitive time, just as India and China were making slow progress in reducing tensions from the four-year military standoff in eastern Ladakh.
New Delhi has warned that such incidents create “unnecessary obstructions” to rebuilding trust, signalling that Beijing’s actions could once again stall the fragile thaw in ties.
