Pema Wangjom Thongdok, an Indian woman from Arunachal, was stopped for 18 hours at Shanghai Airport in China. Chinese officials declared his passport invalid and called Arunachal a part of China. Pema called it an attack on India’s sovereignty and demanded action.
New Delhi. An Indian woman hailing from Arunachal Pradesh was detained for more than 18 hours at Shanghai Airport in China. The woman alleges that the Chinese authorities had declared her Indian passport invalid. Pema Wangjom Thongdok has shared her ordeal at Shanghai Airport on social media handle According to Thongdok, she is an Indian citizen and has been living in the UK for about 14 years. This incident happened when she was going from London’s Gatwick Airport to Japan via a transit in Shanghai.
Woman stopped after telling Arunachal as Chinese territory
In a post on microblogging site According to Thongdok’s statement, Chinese immigration officials deemed his Indian passport “invalid” after seeing ‘Arunachal Pradesh’ listed as his birthplace.
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Pema stopped from catching flight to Japan
According to reports, Chinese immigration officials said, “Arunachal Pradesh is part of China.” They also refused to recognize Pema’s Indian citizenship. Her passport was confiscated and she was barred from boarding onward flights despite having a valid Japanese visa.
Chinese Airlines staff misbehaved
Thongdok said that many immigration officers and China Eastern Airlines staff made fun of him. He even suggested he “apply for a Chinese passport.” Not only this, Pema was not given food, airport facilities and any official update regarding her status.
Thongdok suffered huge loss due to missed flight
According to reports, Thongdok was also stopped from boarding his scheduled flight to Japan. Not only this, his passport was returned only when he said yes to buying a new China Eastern Airlines ticket. Thongdok suffered a loss in ticket and hotel booking due to the missed flight. He later contacted the Indian Consulate in Shanghai through a friend in the UK. After this she was able to leave Shanghai airport late at night.
Thongdok said it was an attack on India’s sovereignty.
Calling the incident an “insult to India’s sovereignty”, Thongdok appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indian officials to raise the issue with Beijing. He appealed to the Government of India to ensure accountability, seek compensation and guarantee that all Indians from Arunachal Pradesh will not face such discrimination during any future travel abroad.
China got a befitting reply on changing the names of places in Arunachal
Let us tell you that China has often been claiming many parts of Arunachal Pradesh as its own. In May 2025, India had bluntly said that changing the names of Indian territories will not change the fact that Arunachal was, is and will always be an important part of India. New Delhi’s statement was in response to Beijing’s announcement in which it had talked about keeping 27 places in the northeastern state with Chinese names, which mainly include 15 mountains, four passes, two rivers, one lake and five populated areas.