‘Mischievous attempts’: India rejects China's renaming of places in Arunachal Pradesh

Addressing the wider implications for regional diplomacy, Jaiswal cautioned that such unilateral moves by Beijing could hamper the progress achieved through diplomatic engagement.

India on Sunday rejected China’s latest move to assign what it called “fictitious names”  to certain geographical locations, a development that comes alongside reports of Beijing setting up a new county in its Xinjiang province near the borders of Afghanistan, Arunachal Pradesh, and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Addressing the development, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal outlined New Delhi’s position on the administrative actions along disputed border areas. "India categorically rejects any mischievous attempts by the Chinese side to assign fictitious names to places which form part of the territory of India," Jaiswal said in his statement.

Randhir Jaiswal emphasised that the renaming of the regions does not alter the sovereign status of the locations involved. 

He asserted that "such attempts by China at introducing false claims and manufacturing baseless narratives cannot alter the undeniable reality that these places and territories, including Arunachal Pradesh, were, are, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India."

Addressing the wider implications for regional diplomacy, Jaiswal cautioned that such unilateral moves by Beijing could hamper the progress achieved through diplomatic engagement. "These actions by the Chinese side detract from ongoing efforts to stabilise and normalise India-China bilateral ties. China should refrain from actions that inject negativity into relations and undermine efforts to create better understanding," he added.

This diplomatic response comes amid ongoing tensions over territorial disputes in Ladakh, where China has reportedly set up a new administrative unit in its Xinjiang region near the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The newly created county, named “Cenling,” was formally approved by the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government on March 26 and will be administered under the Kashgar prefecture, according to a South China Morning Post report. Located close to the Karakoram mountain range, the creation of this unit holds significant geopolitical importance, given its proximity to both Afghanistan and the PoK.

This marks the third instance in just over a year that China has created a new county in Xinjiang. Earlier, New Delhi had lodged formal protests with Beijing over the establishment of “Hean” and “Hekang” counties, asserting that parts of the territory claimed under Chinese administration actually fall within the Union Territory of Ladakh.

In particular, “Hean county” covers a substantial portion of the Aksai Chin plateau. Although China has controlled this region since the 1962 war, India continues to consider it an integral part of Ladakh, making it a key point of contention between the two countries.

The administrative centre of the new county, Kashgar, is a historically significant city along the ancient Silk Road and serves as a crucial gateway linking China with South and Central Asia. It is also the starting point of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a multi-billion-dollar infrastructure initiative that passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), which India has consistently opposed, citing concerns over its sovereignty.

While the exact administrative boundaries and divisions of Cenling have not been revealed, its proximity to strategically sensitive areas highlights growing concerns over China’s continued administrative changes near contested international border regions.