The head of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has said what the government has not: that confrontations along the Arunachal Pradesh border are still going on.

Speaking at the force’s annual felicitation ceremony in Alwar, Rajasthan, on Thursday, Director General Shatrujeet Kapur said: “In the past few days, a situation arose where face-offs happened at several locations in Arunachal and it still continues.” Reports describe it as the first public confirmation from the force’s chief of ongoing tensions in the eastern sector.

What Kapur said, and didn’t say

Kapur did not name China in the remarks quoted in reports. He praised the ITBP’s newly raised Shaurya Commando teams for their role in handling the situation. The force, he said, is stepping up preparations for modern warfare with drones, specialised commandos and new underground shelters.

He did not give details of where the face-offs are, how many troops are involved or how they began. No violence or casualties have been reported in connection with the latest confrontations.

Background

Reports of a stand-off between Indian and Chinese soldiers near Taksing, in Arunachal’s Upper Subansiri district, emerged in July, with several confrontations reportedly along the boundary. Reports say India and China held talks more than a month ago amid those tensions. China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet, which India rejects. The Line of Actual Control is about 3,488 km long.

Congress’s attack

The Congress quickly turned Kapur’s words into a political charge. General secretary Jairam Ramesh shared a report of the remarks on X and wrote that, while the “self-styled Vishwaguru’s calibrated concessions to China continue”, the ITBP chief had praised the force’s performance in recent face-offs with the People’s Liberation Army, on which there had been “a deafening silence from the PM and his establishment”.

He also said China continues to rename towns in Arunachal and is building a 60,000-MW dam that threatens India’s ecological and water security. Another post circulating online asked, “After Galwan, now Arunachal?”

I found no response from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of External Affairs, the Ministry of Defence or the Army to Kapur’s remarks or the Congress’s charge.

Why it matters

The ITBP, not the Army, is the main force guarding much of the India-China frontier, so its chief’s statement carries weight. It also sits awkwardly with a period of cautious thaw between Delhi and Beijing. Official silence has left room for the Opposition, which has long accused the government of downplaying Chinese moves along the border.

What to watch

Whether the government or Army confirm the details, whether another round of military talks is held, and whether the confrontations ease or spread to other sectors.

 

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