By Choekyi Lhamo
DHARAMSHALA, June 25: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Wednesday called the Line of Actual Control (LAC) bordering in his state as the Indo-Tibet border. Amid the ongoing tension between India and China over the recent face-off where 20 Indians died, CM met with Indian army officials at the Bumla border outpost.
He tweeted, “The valour of Indian Army is what we counted ever since our Independence. Had an opportunity to interact with the brave jawans today at Bumla post on the Indo-Tibet border. Their josh (excitement) is at the highest level. We are in safe hands when it comes to our borders.”
Bumla forward area is one of the most significant border outposts between India and China; it is a tri-junction area which includes two of eight disputed areas along the stretch of 1126-km of LAC in Andhra Pradesh. China has long claimed Arunachal Pradesh as part of Southern Tibet whereas India has always dismissed such objections maintaining the state as an integral part of its union.
The statement made by the CM holds significance as he has taken Tibet into consideration at a time where Tibetans in exile have continuously urged India to resolve the issue of Tibet in order to solve border disputes between the two Asian giants. Arunachal has always welcomed the Dalai Lama to Bomdila, Dhirang, and Tawang in 2017.
China expresses timely objections when officials from Indian administration visited the state, including the last visit of PM Modi in Feb 2019. The long disputed border is a frequent site for Sino-China rhetoric. The last deaths at the Indo-Tibet LAC were in 1975 when an Indian patrol was ambushed by Chinese soldiers in Arunachal Pradesh.
One Response
Tibet is an occupied land and the China has no right, whatsoever under any treaty or convention to negotiate its territory with India. The colonial power who invaded the country in 1949 with its superior military forces has committed the worst racial and cultural genocide in occupied Tibet. The list of atrocities committed by the Chinese forces are endless and to sum up these in broad categories may include its land, water, air, space and its true owner- the natives.
It is time to review India’s Tibet policy and correct the past mistake of Pt. Nehru. China under the CCP can never be a good friend of neither Tibet nor China. Once bitten, twice shy and India has to remain always alert in the northern frontier, no matter how sweet the CCP might talk. China is not a reliable and trustworthy partner for any development anywhere in the world.