Amidst the centuries-old cultural ties of bread and butter between India and Nepal, Nepal’s Prime Minister Balen Shah has made a highly controversial and childish diplomatic move, which has become a thorn in Nepal’s side. Speaking in Nepal’s Parliament (Sabha of Representatives), PM Balen Shah unsuccessfully attempted to drag colonial superpower Britain (UK) into the ongoing Lipulekh, Kalapani, and Limpiyadhura border dispute with India. Balen Shah made the sensational claim that since this border dispute dates back to the Sugauli Treaty of 1816, i.e., the British era, he has appealed to Britain and China to intervene and mediate on this issue against India. However, this move by Nepal on the international stage backfired completely when Britain flatly refused to intervene, calling it a bilateral matter between India and Nepal. Balen Shah suffered a severe diplomatic defeat internationally.
Balen Shah’s international gamble not only failed on the global stage, but also landed him in his own country under accusations of treason due to a self-destructive statement he made in Parliament. Addressing Parliament, Balen Shah made a startling statement, “After becoming Prime Minister, I learned that not only India has occupied Nepal’s land, but Nepal has also illegally encroached on Indian land in many places.” The Nepali Prime Minister’s admission of Indian land grabbing in his own Parliament has caused a political upheaval in Kathmandu. The entire opposition, including the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of India (CPN), has denounced Balen Shah’s statement as treason and treason. Following mounting public outrage and widespread backlash, Nepal’s Foreign Ministry was forced to hastily issue a written clarification in damage control, stating that the Prime Minister was referring only to local farming in the border no-man’s land (Dashgaja area), and not to any official occupation.
Nationalist thinkers and strategic experts clearly state that Balen Shah is resorting to an anti-India narrative to hide his declining popularity and domestic political failures. Nepal’s communist and leftist forces have been rattled since the announcement of the revival of the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage route between India and China through the Lipulekh Pass. India has always maintained a clear and firm stance that the Kalapani and Lipulekh areas are an integral part of Uttarakhand, and that no third country has any role in this. Following Britain’s rejection of Nepal’s threats, demands for a public apology from Balen Shah have intensified in Nepal. Experts believe that this immature and unwarranted move by Balen Shah has left Nepal extremely vulnerable and ridiculous in future diplomatic negotiations.