Objecting to such visit will not change reality: India to China on Shah's visit to Arunachal

India on Tuesday rejected China's objection to Home Minister Amit Shah's visit to Arunachal Pradesh and firmly stated that the state "was, is and will" always remain an integral and inalienable part of the country.

In response to media queries regarding China's comments on the recent visit of the Home Minister to Arunachal Pradesh, the official spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi said, "We completely reject the comments made by the Chinese Official Spokesperson."

The spokesperson further said that leaders visit Arunachal like any other state of India.

"Indian leaders routinely travel to the state of Arunachal Pradesh as they do to any other state of India. Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India. Objecting to such visits does not stand to reason and will not change the above reality," he added.

In a clear message to China from the border village of Kibithoo in Arunachal Pradesh, Shah on Monday had said no one can dare cast an evil eye on India's territorial integrity and encroach even an "inch of our land." He said the era when anyone could encroach the borderlands of India was over.

"Today, we can proudly say that no one can encroach even a tip of a pin's worth of our land because ITBP and Indian Army are present at our borders," he said in Kibithoo in Arunachal Pradesh.

The Union Minister is in Kibithoo in Arunachal Pradesh to launch the 'Vibrant Villages Programme'.

"The entire country can sleep peacefully in their homes today because our ITBP jawans & Army is working day & night on our borders. Today, we can proudly say that no one has the power to cast an evil eye on us," ANI quoted Shah in a tweet.

"Before 2014, the entire Northeast region was known as a disturbed region but in the last 9 years, because of PM Modi's 'Look East' policy, Northeast is now considered an area which contributes to the development of the country," he stated.

On the other hand, China has slammed Shah's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, stating that it violated Chinese sovereignty over the area, a claim outrightly dismissed by India.

"Zangnan, (the Chinese name for Arunachal Pradesh) is China's territory," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a media briefing while answering a question on Shah's visit to the area.

"Indian officials' activities in this area violate China's sovereignty and (are) not conducive to peace and tranquility in the border regions. We firmly oppose it," he said.