Nepal’s newly sworn in Prime Minister Balendra Shah on Sunday triggered a controversy after he said that the Himalayan nation has also “encroached” India’s territories. His remarks have reignited the dispute over borders between the two countries.
The rapper-turned-politician was speaking during his maiden appearance in the Parliament when he made the remarks. He said Nepal has officially sent a diplomatic note to India over encroachment of territories, including Lipulekh, adding that they have mutually agreed to resolve the dispute.
It was then when a parliamentarian asked Shah about his government’s stand on Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani areas, when he said that Nepal has also encroached the land of India.
“You will be surprised to know about a fact, which I have learnt recently, only after becoming the Prime Minister. It is not only India that has encroached Nepalese territories, but Nepal has also encroached India’s territories in many places,” Shah, who is Nepal’s youngest prime minister, said.ย ย
India has not responded to Shah’s remarks yet.
The India-Nepal border dispute
India and Nepal have border dispute over Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura and Kalapani. India maintains that the three places are part of Uttarakhand. The India-Nepal border, signed between Nepal and the British East India Company in 1816, is based on the Sugauli Treaty of 1816 under which territories of Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani and Susta are yet to be demarcated.ย
Earlier this month, Nepal raised objections over the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra passing through the Lipulekh Pass, but India rejected the claims, saying “unilateral artificial enlargement of territorial claims is untenable”.
“As regards territorial claims, India has consistently maintained that such claims are neither justified nor based on historical facts and evidence. Such unilateral artificial enlargement of territorial claims is untenable,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said in a statement.
“India remains open to a constructive interaction with Nepal on all issues in the bilateral relationship, including on resolving agreed outstanding boundary issues through dialogue and diplomacy,” he added.
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