China's objection to his Arunachal state most unfortunate: India defence minister

New Delhi, Feb 27 (PTI) India's Defence Minister A K Antony Monday slammed China for raising objections to his visit to Arunachal Pradesh state in the country's northeast, describing Beijing's comments on the issue as "most unfortunate" and "really objectionable". He said Arunachal Pradesh is an intergral part of India and as the country's defence minister it is his right and duty to visit the state, which recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of its statehood. "I was surprised to see such a reaction. I feel it is most unfortunate and, at the same time, it is really objectionable," he told reporters here. His comments came as China reacted sharply to Antony's visit to Arunachal Pradesh for its statehood celebrations and said India should refrain from taking any action that could "complicate" the border issue. Antony said it was his right as defence minister to visit all the Indian border states. "I have been visiting Arunachal since 1984. This time, I was thrilled to visit the state on its silver jubilee of attaining statehood," he said, adding the state has achieved progress. He said he was happy about the progress of the state and, at the same time, he felt that one has to give full support to it. PTI