Arunachal Pradesh is integral, inalienable to India: New Delhi slams Beijing's comments on PM Modi's visit to state

India on Saturday slammed China for its comment on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, reiterating that the "state of Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India".

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, "Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from time to time, as they visit other parts of India. This consistent position has been conveyed to the Chinese side on several occasions."

China had strongly reacted to Prime Minister's Arunachal Pradesh visit on Saturday calling on the Indian side to "cherish the momentum" in ties and "refrain from actions" that may lead to "escalation of disputes".

In a statement on Chinese foreign ministry website, spokesperson Hua Chunying said, "China urges the Indian side to bear in mind the common interests of the two countries, respect the interests and concerns of the Chinese side, cherish the momentum of improvement in bilateral relations, and refrain from any action that may lead to the escalation of disputes or complicate the boundary question."

Hua added, "the Chinese government has never recognized the so-called 'Arunachal Pradesh' and is firmly opposed to the Indian leader's visit to the East Section of the China-India boundary". "China's position on the China-India boundary question is consistent and clear-cut," the Chinese spokesperson added. 

PM Modi is in Arunachal Pradesh today. He laid the foundation stone for the construction of Greenfield Airport at Hollongi and Sela Tunnel. He also dedicated a new DD Channel for Arunachal Pradesh - DD Arun Prabha at IG Park, Itanagar. The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for a permanent campus of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) at Jote, Arunachal Pradesh.

China and India have been trying to reset the ties after the two-month-long Doklam crisis in 2017. The crisis had impacted the relationship between the two nations. 

Chinese forces had tried to build a road on the Doklam plateau in Bhutan in 2017 which was stopped by the Indian Army leading to a two-month long standoff between both the countries.

Last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping for the four times, starting with the informal summit in Wuhan in April. The Chinese President is set to visit India this year for the second informal summit.