Two New Flashpoints Test India–China Efforts to Mend Ties

India lodged a strong protest with China after immigration officials at Shanghai airport detained and harassed an Arunachal Pradesh woman last week, even as security forces in Uttar Pradesh arrested a Chinese national for illegally entering Indian territory.

On November 21, Prema Thongdok, a regulatory consultant based in London, was stopped while transiting through Shanghai en route to Japan. She was held for 18 hours, during which immigration and airline staff allegedly mocked her Indian passport and told her to "apply for a Chinese passport," insisting Arunachal Pradesh was Chinese territory.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed that a "strong demarche" was issued to Beijing and the Chinese embassy in Delhi the same day. The Indian consulate in Shanghai also intervened to assist the stranded passenger. "Arunachal Pradesh is indisputably Indian territory, and its residents are fully entitled to travel with Indian passports," MEA sources said, adding that the incident violated international civil aviation conventions.

Thongdok, who has lived in the UK for 14 years, noted she had transited through China in October 2024 without incident, raising questions about the timing and intent of the harassment.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, Indian border forces arrested a 49-year-old Chinese citizen, Liu Qunjing, at the Rupaidiha checkpost on the India-Nepal frontier in Bahraich district on November 24. Officials said he had entered India illegally from Nepal and was found videographing sensitive border areas.

Security personnel recovered Pakistani, Chinese, and Nepalese currency, three mobile phones-including one containing videos of restricted Indian locations-and a map of Nepal. Qunjing, a resident of Hunan province, lacked valid travel documents and was handed over to local police. A case under the Foreigners Act has been registered.

Investigations revealed that Qunjing entered Nepal on November 15 on a tourist visa, reached Nepalgunj on November 22, and crossed into India two days later. His travel history includes visits to Pakistan, further heightening concerns among Indian agencies.

The twin incidents-one involving the harassment of an Indian citizen abroad and the other the arrest of a Chinese national inside India-come at a time when New Delhi and Beijing are attempting to stabilize ties strained by border disputes and mistrust. Officials warn that such episodes risk undermining fragile efforts at confidence-building between the two Asian neighbours.