Bamang Tago, the manager of the Indian badminton team in the ongoing Thaihot China Open championship, was denied a visa by China, according to a Times of India report on Thursday. The Chinese embassy in Delhi informed Tago, who is also the secretary of the Arunachal Pradesh State Badminton Association, that his visa was not issued owing to his Arunachal domicile. Tago was to lead a team of 14 members including players.
While the Indian shuttlers completed their first-round matches of the tournament in Fuzhou on Wednesday, Tago met junior home minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday regarding the issue.
The Thaihot China Open is among the Super Series calendar events of the Badminton World Federation. The team was invited by the Fuzhou Municipal Sports Bureau. “The Badminton Association of India had submitted all relevant documents of the Indian contingent at the Chinese Embassy several weeks ago for visa. All the 13 members got their visas and left for Fuzhou on November 12, but for the manager,” said Tago.
When BAI official Anand Kare inquired about the visas denial on November 14, the embassy said “It needs approval from China”, reported Times of India. Territorial dispute between India and China over Arunachal Pradesh has cast a shadow on the people of the state which the Chinese claim as their own.
