Hangzhou Asian Games: China bars players from Arunachal Pradesh, India lodges protest

The government said Indian Sports Minister Anurag Thakur has also cancelled his scheduled visit to China over the issue.

Three women wushu players from Arunachal Pradesh, which is claimed by China, couldn’t travel to Hangzhou as they were unable to download travel documents from an official Chinese website, reports Hindustan Times.

India's Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement which said: "Government of India has learnt Chinese authorities have, in a targeted and pre-meditated manner, discriminated against some Indian sportspersons from Arunachal Pradesh by denying them accreditation and entry to the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China."

"In line with our long-standing and consistent position, India firmly rejects differential treatment of Indian citizens on basis of domicile or ethnicity. Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India," the statement said.

“A strong protest has been lodged in New Delhi and Beijing against China’s deliberate and selective obstruction of some of our sportspersons,” the statement said.

China claims Arunachal Pradesh as 'South Tibet', while India says it is an integral part of India and is inseparable from the country and the state has remained the bone of contention between the two neighbours for a long.

Last month, India lodged a strong protest through diplomatic channels with Beijing over the issue of the 2023 standard map of China that laid claims to India’s territory.