NEW DELHI, April 20 - India on Thursday rejected the renaming of certain areas of Arunachal Pradesh by China, pointing out that such acts do not change the legal status of these places.
Reacting to China�s latest act, official spokesman of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Gopal Bagley said that mere renaming of the existing places, including towns, does not change their legal status.
�Arunachal Pradesh continues to be a legal and integral part of India,� he said.
The Chinese names of the six places using the Roman alphabet are � Wo�gyainling, Mila Ri, Qoid�ngarbo Ri, Mainquka, B�mo La and Namkapub Ri.
China has renamed six places including Tawang, Kra Daadi, West Siang, Siang, Anjaw and Subansiri, respectively.
�These names reflect... that China�s territorial claim over South Tibet (Arunachal Pradesh) is supported by clear evidence in terms of history, culture and administration,� Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said.
Defending the action to standardise the names, Lu Kang said, �to issue these names is actually carried out in accordance with the regulations about the names of the localities and it is a legitimate action by the Chinese government.�
�Let me stress that about the Indian government�s indulgence of (the) Dalai Lama�s activities in the disputed eastern section of the India-China boundary and also about his anti-China activities, this is something we are firmly against. These activities are also against the Indian government�s commitments to China,� Kang said.
