NEW DELHI, 25 Jan: India has shared details of a missing Arunachal Pradesh youth with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to corroborate the identity of the youth in their custody, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said on Tuesday.
He said the Chinese side had conveyed to the Indian Army on 20 January that they had found a youth on their side and requested for further details to establish the identity.
“To assist Chinese side in corroborating the identity, personal details and photo of the individual has been shared with the Chinese side by the Indian Army. Response from the Chinese side is awaited,” Rijiju said in a statement put out on the Koo app.
Congress leaders had hit out at the Modi government over the missing Arunachal youth. “If you are the government, do your duty. Bring back Miram Taron,” Rahul Gandhi had said on Twitter.
Rijiju said, “We are constantly following the case from the day one. I appeal to everyone to be cautious in making statements which are not based on facts because the safety and safe return of our young Arunachal Pradesh youth is the priority.”
According to the statement, 19-year-old Miram Taron, of Jido village in Upper Siang district, went missing on 18 January.
“Some people reported that Chinese PLA had taken him into their custody,” it said.
Rijiju said that, since the individual was missing from an area close to the line of actual control, the Indian Army immediately approached the Chinese side on 19 January, asking for assistance in tracing and returning the individual, in case he had strayed into the Chinese territory or the PLA had taken him in its custody.
The Chinese side had assured that they would search for the individual and return him as per established protocol, the minister said. (PTI)
