General Manoj Mukund Naravane, Chief of the Army Staff, Indian Army, is all set to visit Nepal on November 4 for three-days. It is the first high-level visit between the two neighbours since a border row hit ties earlier this year.
Though this visit is a customary one, where Nepal’s President Vidya Devi Bhandari will “confer the honorary rank of general of the Nepali Army to the Indian army chief in a ceremony, it can also help rebuild ties as relations between Nepal and India appear to have reached an all-time low due to the boundary dispute starting from November last year.
Nepal published a new, authoritative political map showing the areas of Lipulekh, Kalapani, and Limpiyadhura as part of its territory, toughening its stance on a recently flared up territorial dispute with India.
The Nepali government’s move to unveil a new political map came after India published its map more than six months ago, including the Lipulekh and Kalapani areas in its claimed territory. The tensions between the two neighbours deepened further when India inaugurated a road linking Dharchula in Uttarakhand state to Lipulekh, as part of the Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrimage route.
Nepal’s Parliament endorsed a constitutional amendment bill tabled by the government to revise its political map to include the areas of Lipulekh, Kalapani, and Limpiyadhura as part of its territory.
The passage of the Bill marks a historic move for Nepal and a tough blow for India, which is seen as acting as a regional bully or ‘big brother’ in Nepal. Nothing underlines this attitude better than its willingness to hold to talks on the border issue with China at both the military and even diplomatic level, but not with Nepal.
Nepal has always wanted to hold bilateral discussions with India to diffuse the border issue, but India has never shown any interest to that end.
After the dispute began, Naravane said Nepal’s protest against the border road was at the behest of “someone else” where he hinted to China. His statement had created a huge uproar in Nepal.
Though the border dispute issue may not be discussed officially in the meeting, unofficially message can be delivered through him.
It is an opportunity for Nepal to initiate dialogue. As Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli heads the Defence Ministry, he can talk with the General about the border issues.
This visit is an opportunity for the two sides to push for defence and security cooperation.
(The writer is an author and businessman based in Nepal)