India on Friday filed a formal protest against China’s “deliberate and selective obstruction of sportspersons” after Beijing denied visas and accreditation to athletes from Arunachal Pradesh.
“Government of India has learnt that the Chinese authorities have, in a targeted and pre-meditated manner, discriminated against some of the Indian sportspersons from the state of Arunachal Pradesh by denying them accreditation and entry to the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
“In line with our long-standing and consistent position, India firmly rejects differential treatment of Indian citizens on basis of domicile or ethnicity. Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India,” Bagchi added.
Bagchi said the government had lodged a strong protest in New Delhi and Beijing over China’s “deliberate and selective obstruction” of Indian athletes. He said the government had noted that these actions “violate both the spirit of the Asian Games and rules governing their conduct”.
India “reserves the right to take suitable measures to safeguard (its) interests”, he added.
The three wushu players – Nyeman Wangsu, Onilu Tega and Mepung Lamgu – received their accreditation cards from Hangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee (HAGOC) which also acts as an entry visa. However, they could not download their travel document on Wednesday when they were scheduled to leave for the Asian Games.
“Once the athletes received the accreditation cards from the organising committee, it meant that they were cleared to travel for the Asian Games. But surprisingly only these three players could not download their document and they could not board the flight,” Hindustan Times quoted an official as saying.
Union Minister Anurag Thakur has also cancelled his visit to China.
