Indian traders out of Yiwu,China assures safety

This came a day after India issued a strongly-worded advisory cautioning Indians from not doing business with traders in Yiwu.

Indian diplomats from the Shanghai consulate today escorted the two Indians,Deepak Raheja and Shamsunder Agarwal who were holed up in a hotel under Chinese police protection for the last four days,with armed groups waiting outside out of Yiwu,even as External Affairs Minister S M Krishna told the Chinese envoy here that the safety of the two businessmen is of utmost importance.

Calling the Chinese ambassador Zhang Yan to his residence today,Krishna stressed on the fact that the rule of law should prevail in the matter,and local Chinese traders cannot be allowed to illegally detain or use violent means against Indian nationals in China.

This came a day after India issued a strongly-worded advisory cautioning Indians from not doing business with traders in Yiwu.

During his meeting with Krishna,Chinese envoy Zhang Yan assured adequate safety to Indian nationals there with criminal proceedings being initiated against five locals suspected to have been involved in the act. The Chinese government attaches great importance to this matter. We are working very hard to find a solution to this issue and to resolve it as early as possible, Zhang added. With regard to the two businessmen,the envoy said,those people are safe and have their freedom.

Krishna,on his part,said,I am immensely pleased and satisfied with the quick response I got from the Chinese ambassador and also pleased and satisfied with the local authorities in China,who have been cooperative.