Chinese President Xi Jinping is on Indian soil. And the question on everyone’s lips in the Northeast isn’t about trade agreements or diplomatic pleasantries — it’s about Arunachal Pradesh.
As Xi touched down for the BRICS Summit 2026, the Congress party wasted absolutely no time putting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the spot. AICC General Secretary and Assam in-charge Bhupesh Baghel, speaking from Guwahati, publicly questioned whether the Prime Minister would raise the sensitive issues concerning Arunachal Pradesh and the deadly Galwan clash during his face-to-face talks with the Chinese leader. It’s a pointed question — and one that cuts right to the heart of what millions in the Northeast have been asking for years.
This isn’t just political posturing. There’s real weight to it.
Baghel didn’t mince words. He asked whether PM Modi would confront Beijing over disputes that have repeatedly strained ties between the two nations. “Given the disputes that frequently arise regarding Galwan or Arunachal Pradesh, will the Prime Minister discuss these issues? Will he show them a ‘red eye’?” That last phrase — “red eye” — is a colloquial way of saying: will he stand firm? Will he push back? It’s a challenge wrapped in a question.
The backdrop here matters enormously. Tensions between India and China over their disputed border have never really gone away, and Beijing’s repeated claims over Arunachal Pradesh — which India has consistently and firmly rejected — remain a raw, unresolved nerve. For people living in Arunachal Pradesh, these aren’t abstract geopolitical talking points. This is about their land, their identity, their future.
The BRICS Summit, on paper, is about multilateral cooperation — trade, climate, global development. But summits between two countries with unfinished business on the border are never really just about economics. Every handshake, every bilateral meeting carries a subtext. And for Arunachal, that subtext is everything.
Baghel directly questioned whether the Arunachal issue would figure in the Prime Minister’s discussions with Xi during the summit. It’s a fair ask. Because if not now — with Xi physically present on Indian soil and the world watching — then when?
Baghel’s visit to Guwahati was primarily in connection with the party’s preparations for the upcoming Nagaon Lok Sabha by-election and Assam local body elections, but his remarks on Arunachal rang louder than any election strategy. It’s a reminder that no matter how many local polls come and go, the border question refuses to be buried under campaign noise.
The Modi government has, in the past, signalled both firmness and diplomatic caution in its dealings with China — sometimes in the same breath. After the Galwan clashes of 2020, there was outrage, then measured talks, then a gradual, partial disengagement. But Arunachal’s status — China calling it “South Tibet,” India calling it an integral part of its territory — remains stubbornly unresolved.
So as BRICS delegates gather, as cameras capture diplomatic smiles and formal handshakes, one question from Guwahati echoes with uncomfortable clarity: Prime Minister, will you look Xi Jinping in the eye and talk about Arunachal?
The people of the Northeast are watching. And they’re not just watching for optics.
