China Asks Lone Indian Reporter In Beijing To Leave

Amid a deepening rift between the two countries, China has asked the lone Indian journalist in Beijing to leave the country by the end of this month, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the development.

The said journalist is a reporter from the news agency Press Trust Of India (PTI). At the start of the year, there were four Indian journalists in China. While a journalist from Hindustan Times left over the weekend, China denied visas for two reporters (one each from Prasar Bharati and The Hindu) in April, the report stated.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, last month, had claimed the visa of one Chinese journalist was yet to be approved by Delhi. He had alleged that Chinese reporters had to face "unfair and discriminatory treatment" in India for a long time. She said, "In 2017, the Indian side shortened the period of validity of visas held by Chinese journalists in India to three months or even one month without any valid reason,"

She then claimed, "Since 2020, the Indian side has refused to review and approve Chinese journalists' applications for stationing in India."

However, the Indian side rejected the allegations and said that all foreign journalists, including Chinese, have been doing their work in India without any restrictions or difficulties and hoped that Chinese side facilitates Indian journalists. Answering a query on China expelling Indian Journalists during the briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said, "All foreign journalists, including Chinese journalists have been pursuing journalistic activities in India without any limitations or difficulties in reporting or doing media coverage."

The dispute regarding visas began a few months ago when Indian journalists hired assistants in China to assist with their reporting. Beijing responded by implementing regulations that restrict employment to a maximum of three individuals at a time, all of whom must be selected from a pool provided by the Chinese authorities. It is important to note that India does not have any limitations on hiring in this regard.

The spat over the visa issue is the latest flashpoint between the two Asian economic powerhouses since the deadly Galwan clash in 2020.

However, China's foreign ministry and the Ministry of External Affairs did not respond to the reports.