Time for India and Nepal to Make Up

Context: There is a need to restore India Nepal relations through proper diplomatic channels to resolve the border dispute.

Challenges in India- Nepal Relations:

• The difference in Border Claims:

• Nepal’s Claim is centred around the Treaty of Sugauli (1815): No agreement has superseded that treaty, so no subsequent cartographic machinery can undermine the 1815 document.
• Areas of Tensions: ownership of the triangle north of Kumaon, including

• The Limpiyadhura ridgeline,
• The high pass into Tibet at Lipu Lek, and 
• The Kalapani area hosting an Indian Army garrison.

• Misconstrued Quiet Diplomacy of Nepal: As per the Nepali diplomats, it preferred quiet diplomacy and that Kalapani had never been off the table since talks began in the early 1980s.

• Since a joint communiqué issued in 1997, the two governments have agreed that a territorial dispute exists on upstream Kali and have assigned negotiators.

• Democracy in Nepal: With the advent of democracy in Nepal after 1990, the demand for evacuation of Kalapani gained momentum. 

• Recent developments that triggered the tensions:

• India published its new political map in November pressurising  Nepal to put out its map incorporating the Limpiyadhura finger. 
• Nepal introduced a constitutional amendment to certify the new map.

Way Forward: 

• Focussing on backchannel diplomacy between the two capitals, which helped in ending the 2015 blockade. 
• Recognising the Friendship and geopolitical significance of Nepal:

• Nepal responded with sensitivity towards India before and after the India-China war in 1962 and did not publicly demand its withdrawal.
• Nepal, along with Bhutan, acts as the strategic buffer against the rising hegemon i.e. China. 

• Immediate de-escalation: It requires verbal restraint on the part of Prime Minister Oli and India’s willingness to talk even as the pandemic continues. 

• India needs to maintain the status quo in the disputed area by halting construction on the Lipu Lek track.
• Reactivate Talks: With the help of the video conference facility between the two Foreign Secretaries.

• Encouraging Public Commitments: The formal negotiations should begin with ab initio public commitment by both sides to redraw their respective maps according to the negotiated settlement.
• Build a Limpiyadhura Zone of Peace and Pilgrimage: The area should be de-militarised and irrespective of the outcomes of the agreement, should be declared a zone pf peace open for all.