The Indian mission will no longer be participating in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympics which are officially kicking off from Friday, as per the announcement by the government of India on Thursday. The decision has come after the revelation on Wednesday that a People’s Liberation Army regiment commander who was involved in the Galwan Valley Clashes in June 2020 was one of the torchbearers at the Olympics.
The soldier who has been identified as Qi Fabao is reportedly a regimental commander of the PLA. He was severely injured during the 2020 border clashes with the Indian troops in the Galwan Valley. India has described this incident as regrettable China’s decision to fete the commander at such a grand event and has also accused Beijing of politicising a massive international event such as the Winter Olympics. 20 Indian soldiers had lost their lives in the clash with Beijing in Galwan Valley. China also suffered substantial losses in the clash.
India has not boycotted the Olympics 2022 in Beijing but the government has not sent any high-level officials to attend the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics. The Charge d’affaires and the top diplomats in Beijing who were expected to attend both the opening and closing ceremonies have now boycotted them and will be skipping the ceremonies of the Winter Olympics.
Arindam Bagchi, the spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, made a statement in this regard and said that it is regrettable that the Chinese government has chosen an event like the Olympics to be politicised. He said that the Charge d’affaires of the embassy located in China will no more be attending the Opening or the Closing Ceremonies of the 2022 Winter Olympics.
India has lodged a protest against China over the treatment that was given to the youth belonging to Arunachal Pradesh by the PLA after he was allegedly abducted. Miram Taron, aged 17 years was abducted by the army of China on January 18, 2022, from Lungta Jor situated near the Line of Actual Control when he went on a hunting trip with his friends Johny Yaving. He said that he was gravely tortured by the Chinese army and was also administered an electric shock. The Chinese army handed over the youth to the Indian Army on January 27 at the Wacha-Damai interaction point located at Kibithu in the Anjaw district.
The only athlete representing the nation in the Winter Olympics is Skier Arif Khan who is accompanied by Chef De Mission Harjinder Singh along with the support staff. According to a report by the Global Times on Wednesday, commander Qi Fabao had sustained a severe head injury during the Galwan clash with India was a torchbearer at the Olympics. China has failed to disclose the actual number of casualties in the Galwan Valley clash in June 2020.
