China freezes visas for two Indian journalists amid tensions

In a surprise move, China barred two Indian journalists from returning to Beijing, saying their visas have been frozen.

According to The Hindu, State-run Prasar Bharati's reporter Anshuman Mishra and The Hindu correspondent Ananth Krishnan were informed by a Chinese foreign ministry official on Tuesday about the decision.

Reportedly, China is demanding more visas for its correspondents to cover India and wants the current visa tenures, which have to be renewed every three months, to be increased to 12-month visas.

The tit-for-tat move followed the Indian side informing a New Delhi-based correspondent of state-run Xinhua news agency last month that his Indian visa would not be renewed.

In 2016, India had refused to extend visas to three Chinese journalists after after they were found "indulging in activities beyond their journalistic brief".

Three Chinese journalists based in India representing the state-run Xinhua news agency were denied permission for extended stay in the country.

The visas of the three journalists, Delhi-based Bureau Chief Wu Qiang and two reporters in Mumbai - Tang Lu and Ma Qiang, are expiring at the end of this month. All three had sought extension of their stay by a few months till their successors arrive.

Since then, the rift in India-China ties has grown, especially after the standoff between the armies of the two countries over Chinese troops' transgressions along the Line of Actual Control in April 2020.