China on Monday said it lodged a diplomatic protest with India over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Arunachal Pradesh last week, reiterating its claim over the area by saying India's moves will "only complicate" the unresolved boundary question.
India rejected the Chinese concerns and said the country has been made aware of India's position on several occasions.
Prime Minister Modi on Saturday dedicated to the nation the Sela Tunnel built at an altitude of 13,000 feet in Arunachal Pradesh that will provide all-weather connectivity to strategically located Tawang and is expected to ensure better movement of troops along the frontier region.
The Rs 825 crore tunnel, constructed on the road connecting Assam's Tezpur to West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh, is being billed as the longest bi-lane road tunnel in the world at such an altitude.
The Sela Tunnel will provide for better movement of troops and weaponry to various forward locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, according to military officials.
India has repeatedly rejected China's territorial claims over Arunachal Pradesh, asserting that the state is an integral part of the country. New Delhi has also dismissed Beijing's move to assign "invented" names to the area, saying it did not alter the reality.
Asked by the official media here about PM Modi's visit to Arunachal Pradesh at a media briefing here on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, "China strongly deplores and firmly opposes the Indian leader's visit to the East Section of the China-India boundary. We have made solemn representations to India."
Foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal rejected the comments and said objecting to visits by Indian leaders does not stand to reason.
"We reject the comments made by the Chinese side regarding the visit of the Prime Minister to Arunachal Pradesh. Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from time to time, as they visit other States of India. Objecting to such visits or India's developmental projects does not stand to reason. Further, it will not change the reality that the State of Arunachal Pradesh was, is, and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India. Chinese side has been made aware of this consistent position on several occasions," he said.
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