Tahir Bhat banihali(CNI)

India on Wednesday issued a sharp rebuke to China’s latest move to rename several locations in Arunachal Pradesh, dismissing the act as “vain and preposterous.”

In a statement, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We have noticed that China has persisted with its vain and preposterous attempts to name places in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. Consistent with our principled position, we reject such attempts categorically. Creative naming will not alter the undeniable reality that Arunachal Pradesh was, is, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India.”

The remarks come in response to reports that Beijing has once again assigned Chinese names to multiple places in the Indian state, a move that New Delhi says carries no legitimacy or impact on the ground.

This is not the first time China has renamed places in Arunachal Pradesh — previous attempts have coincided with heightened tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), with analysts viewing the timing as deliberate and symbolic, aimed at applying pressure ahead of diplomatic engagements.

India has consistently rejected such renaming exercises, asserting that unilateral actions by Beijing do not alter the legal or territorial reality.(CNI)