Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah “Balen” limited his intervention in a parliamentary discussion on the boundary dispute between India and Nepal over Kalapani, Lipulekh, and Limpiyadhura (areas claimed by both countries) on May 31 to a few minutes. He seemed to suggest that the issue was not one-sided.
“What surprised me after becoming Prime Minister is that it is not only India that is accused of encroaching Nepalese land. In some places, Nepal may also be occupying territory claimed by India. Both countries should examine the facts objectively and resolve the matter amicably as friends.”
This was predictably greeted with a storm of protests within and outside Nepal’s Parliament, despite the Prime Minister’s reiteration that Nepal and India were working towards resolving the boundary issue through diplomatic channels.
Border dispute response
Nepal has also objected to the resumption of India-China trade through the Lipulekh Pass. Mr. Shah shared that the diplomatic note sent by Nepal on this matter received a positive response from India, and both sides have agreed to address the issue through dialogue. Earlier, Nepal’s Foreign Ministry reiterated its commitment to resolving the boundary issue through diplomatic means. The statement came after India rejected Nepal’s objection to the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra route through Lipulekh Pass, describing Kathmandu’s territorial claim as ‘unjustified’ and “influenced by ‘unilateral artificial enlargement’.”
However, the latest developments suggest a more rational approach, which hopefully discards the possibility of the dispute becoming a lasting bilateral irritant and signals a fresh beginning. It is still early days, and the new government’s thoughts in Kathmandu on resetting relations with India are not yet clear.
Shifting political tone
What is already clear is that Nepal’s governance is firmly in the hands of a young generation with its eye on the future rather than the past, determined to free the country from the chains of corruption, nepotism, and ideology — and to prioritise social and economic issues.
Objections raised over trade and religious tourism through areas claimed by Nepal, the postponement of the Indian Foreign Secretary’s visit to Nepal to discuss the Prime Minister’s India visit and the disinclination of Mr. Shah to break protocol to receive India’s Foreign Secretary, all reflect an emerging stance that India will be treated on par with other countries, rather than being given the easy access to top leadership it has traditionally enjoyed under the much-discussed “special relationship.” These may have injected jarring notes in the trajectory of ties, but India appears to have taken them in stride.
Nepalese observers have questioned the wisdom of ignoring India’s crucial importance to Nepal’s present and future well-being. Likely, the bilateral ambiance will not be held prisoner to protocol or to assertions of irrational nationalism or de facto inequality.
Diplomatic path ahead
The sobering thought is that discussions between diplomats and experts may not yield a solution, and the fact that despite both sides emphasising economic cooperation as the core of bilateral ties, the boundary issue cannot be pushed to the back burner indefinitely.
Based on publicly available information, British-era data will be self-contradictory, as British India updated its maps with more recent technology compared to the East India days. The suggestion by Mr. Shah that China and the U.K. may also need to be consulted for a long-term solution may, however, create further complications and delays.
The Chinese position, taken by President Xi Jinping, was that Nepal should sort out the border issue with India. This remains the most rational advice, and it is hoped that both China and Nepal will adhere to this position.
What is important is to avoid an unending period of so called diplomatic and expert-level discussions which will permit the dispute to become a major irritant, given the positions taken by Nepal (which has even printed its version of the disputed map on its currency notes) and India (which has followed the boundary delineation it inherited from the British in 1947 and has serious security interests in maintaining the status quo).
What might be a better option would be for both countries to draw inspiration and ideas from (a) their centuries-old continuum of multifaceted linkages, (b) the open border tradition which has been in existence over more than 1,700 km and was followed even in the disputed area before the India-China war in 1962, and (c) the strong, mutually trusting institutional relationship between the Indian and Nepalese Army which could facilitate and come in useful to sustain a mutually acceptable practical solution.
This, however, will require a shift in mindset on both sides: a determination not to permit differences on boundary delineation to cloud a unique relationship, and a recognition that the so-called encroachment of territory is a mutual phenomenon that is not a result of aggressive territorial assertion and need not be a cause for mutual tension.
The changes in Nepal and the Prime Minister’s statement offer an opportunity that India, too, should respect and seize. The last Indian Prime Minister who had the vision and courage to step beyond conventional diplomatic approaches to such problems with Nepal was Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Prime Minister Narendra Modi appears to have not only vision and courage but also the necessary political self-confidence in selling difficult policies and decisions to the nation, overriding the usual bureaucratic and inevitable nationalistic political posturing. Rabi Lamichhane, President of Nepal’s ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party and Nepal’s Foreign Affairs Minister Shishir Khanal visited India recently to engage in political and diplomatic meetings. The timing of their visits was crucially important
It is time for India and Nepal to move towards a more enlightened bilateral relationship to build a model sustainable partnership.
(K. V. Rajan is former Indian Ambassador to Nepal and Thakur is a policy professional. They are the authors of ‘Kathmandu Chronicle: Reclaiming India-Nepal Relations’. Views are personal)
Published – June 10, 2026 08:30 am IST
