An Indian traveler said Chinese immigration officers detained her for 18 hours last Friday, while she was transiting through Shanghai Pudong Airport on the way to Japan.
The officers took her passport and repeatedly told her to “apply for a Chinese passport,” prompting New Delhi to lodge a strong diplomatic protest.
However, this time, Chinese border officers declared her Indian passport invalid because her birthplace is Arunachal Pradesh—a territory Beijing refers to as “South Tibet” and claims as its own.
China and India have a long-running territorial dispute over Arunachal Pradesh. In 1962, the month-long Sino-Indian War broke out over the dispute, which ended with China retreating to the current line of control and Arunachal Pradesh remaining under Indian sovereignty. Nevertheless, Beijing still claims the region, and travelers from the state often face extraordinary scrutiny when seeking visas for China.
Thongdok said that despite holding a valid visa for Japan and having no interest in leaving the airport’s transit area, she was still barred from boarding her connecting flight. She added that she was also unable to contact her family and was not allowed to purchase any food or water.
She told ANI the experience was “very humiliating.”
According to Thongdok, China Eastern Airlines and Chinese border officials told her they would not return her passport unless she purchased a new ticket through the airline. As a result, she missed her flight to Japan, and her prepaid hotel and travel arrangements were interrupted.
She said she eventually managed to contact a friend in the UK, who helped alert the Indian Consulate in Shanghai. Eventually, Indian Consulate officials assisted her with a new flight, and her passport was returned without any stamps.
