Itanagar: India on Friday lodged a formal protest with China, expressing deep concern over the denial of accreditation to certain athletes from Arunachal Pradesh for the Hangzhou Asian Games.
The Indian government also firmly asserted its right to take “appropriate measures” to protect its interests in response to this issue.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, said that Union Minister of Sports, Anurag Singh Thakur, has canceled his planned visit to China for the Games to express India’s displeasure with China’s discriminatory behavior.
Bagchi characterized China’s actions as a premeditated targeting of these sportspersons, emphasizing that such actions contravene both the spirit of the Asian Games and the established rules governing their conduct.
“These rules explicitly forbid discrimination against competitors from member states,” he said.
India strongly protested China’s deliberate and selective obstruction of Indian sportspersons from Arunachal Pradesh, affirming that the Chinese authorities had, in a deliberate and calculated manner, denied them accreditation and entry into the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
India reasserted its steadfast position, rejecting the differentiation of Indian citizens based on their domicile or ethnicity, and emphasized that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India.
It is worth noting that three wushu athletes hailing from Arunachal Pradesh have encountered obstacles in their journey to the Asian Games in China due to a lack of clearance from Chinese authorities. These athletes, namely Nyeman Wangsu, Onilu Tega, and Mepung Lamgu, had already received their accreditation cards from the Hangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee (HAGOC). These cards, in addition to serving as accreditation, also function as entry visas for the event.
However, the athletes faced a setback when attempting to download their travel documents, which are essential for validation upon their arrival in China. This unexpected delay in obtaining the necessary clearance has regrettably hindered their participation in the Asian Games.
Also read: 3 Arunachalee wushu stars to represent India at Asian Games 2023
