New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs on Tuesday slammed China for renaming several places in Arunachal Pradesh, saying assigning invented names in the state will not change the reality that it is an integral part of India.
“China has persisted with its senseless attempts to rename places in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh,” the MEA said in a statement.
New Delhi said Arunachal Pradesh will remain an integral and inalienable part of India.
“We firmly reject such attempts. Assigning invented names will not alter the reality that Arunachal Pradesh is, has been, and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India,” it added
The Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs released the fourth list of standardised geographical names in Zangnan, the Chinese name for Arunachal Pradesh which Beijing claims as part of south Tibet, state-run Global Times reported on Sunday.
The official website of the ministry posted 30 additional names for the region.
Reacting to China’s move, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said on Monday that the country will not gain anything by changing names.
“If I change the name of your house, will it become mine? Arunachal Pradesh was an Indian state, is an Indian state and will remain so in the future. Nothing will be gained by changing names,” he said.
Union minister Kiren Rijiju has also condemned China’s renaming bid.
“I strongly condemn China’s illegally ‘standardised’ geographical names given to 30 places inside Arunachal Pradesh. China has been making all baseless claims but that’s not going to change the ground reality and the ‘historical facts’,” he said.
He said the people of Arunachal Pradesh are patriotic Indians.
“Arunachal Pradesh is an inalienable part of India, and the people of Arunachal Pradesh are supremely patriotic Indians by all standards & definitions,” he wrote on X.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge condemned the renaming of Arunachal Pradesh’s area by China on Monday, urging the BJP-led Central government to reprimand the country.
“When China resorts to provocation, PM Modi attempts to seek refuge by a false narrative on Katchatheevu! Even after at least 19 rounds of bilateral talks with his Chinese counterpart, PM Modi has not able to use any diplomatic influence on China to stop this absurdity of ‘renaming’ Indian territories…The least Modi Govt can do is strongly condemn and reprimand China on these daily ludicrous actions and statements,” he wrote on X.
