Rijiju said there has been no Chinese intrusion into Arunachal, while the Army too dismissed reports of PLA encroachment as “incorrect and without any basis.”
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has dismissed claims that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has intruded into Indian territory in Arunachal Pradesh, asserting that there has been “no intrusion” on the Indian side even though transgressions by both countries occur because the border has not been clearly demarcated.
Speaking to The Times of India, Rijiju said, “There is no intrusion. Transgressions from both sides happen due to the absence of demarcation.”
His remarks came after a tribal body from Arunachal Pradesh alleged that the PLA had occupied parts of its ancestral grazing, hunting and farming land in the state’s Upper Subansiri district over the past six years, prompting demands for an official verification of the claims.
Meanwhile, the Indian Army on Tuesday also rejected media reports alleging that the Chinese military had recently encroached upon Indian territory and established camps in Arunachal Pradesh, calling such reports “incorrect and without any basis,” according to ANI.
Responding to the allegations, Rijiju maintained that while incidents of transgression do take place along the India-China border, they should not be mistaken for intrusion.
“There is no intrusion. Transgressions from both sides happen due to the absence of demarcation,” he told The Times of India.
The Arunachal West MP explained that the lack of a clearly demarcated boundary results in differing perceptions of the border by both countries, leading to occasional transgressions from either side.
The controversy gained attention after a tribal organisation representing a border community claimed that the People’s Liberation Army had gradually occupied portions of its traditional land in Upper Subansiri district over the last six years.
BORDER INFRASTRUCTURE NOW A PRIORITY: RIJIJU
Rijiju also spoke about infrastructure development in Arunachal Pradesh’s border areas, saying previous Central governments had not invested adequately in the frontier region.
He was quoted as saying that the Narendra Modi-led government had made border infrastructure a priority and significantly accelerated development works in the strategically important state, which is the largest in the Northeast by area.