On Five Missing Youth in Arunachal, China Says That It Has No Information

India had reached out to China after it was reported that the five missing youth had been allegedly been abducted by the PLA. In its response, China also reiterated its claim to Arunachal Pradesh.

New Delhi: After India asked for information about five missing Indian youth from Arunachal Pradesh, China on Monday said that it had no details about the situation and reiterated the Chinese claim to the Northeastern Indian state.

On Saturday, a ruling party member of parliament from Arunachal Pradesh, Tapir Gao had alleged that five young men had been abducted by Chinese army personnel near the border on September 3.

A day later, India’s minister of state for minority affairs, who is also from Arunachal Pradesh, Kiren Rijiju stated that the Indian army was awaiting response from the PLA, after a message was conveyed through the hotline about the missing youth.

During the Monday media briefing in Beijing, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said that he was “not aware of the situation”, adding that China has “never recognised the so-called ‘Arunachal Pradesh’”.

“China’s position on the east sector of the China-India boundary, or Zangnan (the southern part of China’s Xizang), is consistent and clear,” said Chinese foreign office spokesperson Zhao Lijian.

The incident of the five missing youth takes place in the shadow of the ongoing border tensions between India and China in the western sector of the long, mountainous border. Since early May, India and China have been locked in a stand-off, which peaked in a violent clash at Galwan Valley in mid-June.

Since then, talks have been held at various levels for de-escalation and dis-engagement at the multiple stand-off points, but the process is largely stalled. Recently, tensions had again spiked over “provocative action” over two days at a new area in southern bank of Pangong Tso lake.

Last week, Indian and Chinese defence ministers had a face-to-face meeting in Russia to discuss the border tensions, but there doesn’t seem to have been a breakthrough. The two foreign ministers are also expected to meet on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation forum on September 10.

Meanwhile, the fate of the five Arunachali youth remains a mystery. As per the Arunachal Times, they were part of a group that had gone hunting in a forest in Upper Subansiri district. All of them belong to the Tagin community, the dominant tribe in the region.

Two of the group managed to escape and reportedly informed the police about the abduction.

In a statement, the All Arunachal Pradesh Students’ Union called for the early release of the youth and termed their disappearance as a “failure of the Central as well as the state government in protecting life and ensuring security of our people inhabiting the border areas”.

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AAPSU stated that the recent incident was not an isolated one, with similar incidents having taken place in the past.

In March, a 21-year-old man was reportedly “abducted” by the PLA near Asapila sector. He returned after 19 days.

AAPSU asserted that absence of all-weather roads and other infrastructure in the border areas was not only making life difficult for people who live in border areas, but also for the defense personnel deployed along the LAC. “Stop looking at Arunachal only through the prism of security; rather take a more inclusive approach of development at par with other states of the country,” said AAPSU.

The Tagin community’s students organisation also issued a separate statement which not only criticised the Chinese PLA, but also blamed the government for not paying attention to the region.

“Despite repeated attempts made by the PLA, the Government of India has only concentrated on Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir but never focused on the development and security of border areas in Upper Subansiri, especially in terms of road and telecommunication,” said All Tagins Students’ Union on Sunday.