Shillong, July 31: At least eight-athlete wushu Indian contingent was withdrwan from the Summer World University Games beginning in Chengdu on Friday (July 28) after China issued stapled visas to three athletes from the team who belong to Arunachal Pradesh.

Washu is a term that refers to martial arts in Chinese.

This is not the first time that staple visas’ have been issued to Indian citizens from Arunachal Pradesh.

Earlier, athletes from the region were also denied visas for international events.

This year, at least two hundred and twenty-seven Indian athletes are participating in 11 other sports at the games which is held every two years, and are officially known as the FISU World University Games.

What is stapled visa?

A stapled visa refers to a type of visa that is physically attached or stapled to a person’s passport instead of being stamped directly onto the passport pages. A stapled visa is different from a regular visa that is affixed to the passport by the issuing authority and stamped.

Now, China has made it a regular practise to issue stapled visas to Indian nationals from Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

According to China,the visas are valid documents, but the Indian government has consistently refused to accept the issue of stapled visas.

On Thursday, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, said the issue of stapled visas was unacceptable, and we have lodged our strong protest with the Chinese side, reiterating our consistent position on the matter.

Why is staple visas a serious concern?

This is a matter of concern because once the individual with a stapled visa returns back to their country, the entry and exit passes on the stapled visa are torn off and removed. With this, no details or record of the trip are available. This practice also is a part of China which expresses that it does not acknowledge Arunachal Pradesh and J&K as part of India.

Also Read: EXPLAINED: ITR Filing FY 2022–23 Last Date July 31: What happens when you fail to do it?

Also Watch

Find latest news from every corner of Northeast India at hubnetwork.in, your online source for breaking news, video coverage.

Also, Follow us on-

Twitter-twitter.com/nemediahub

Youtube channel- www.youtube.com/@NortheastMediaHub2020

Instagram- www.instagram.com/nemediahub