Border Dispute: Losing The Ground Of Faith ?

Indian army deployed in Kalapani six decades ago when India and China were in prone war positions. The time was not in favor of Nepal to raise the issue. Nepal has been raising the issue at a high level of political meet for the last four decades. Both agree to solve all border problems between them. A secretary-level joint committee is working in the field. But the committee does not find the solution of Kalapani and Susta, without high-level political concent. It is not the time for ego and encroachment but for peace friendship and justice.                

Recently on 2 November India published its political map that covers Nepal claiming Kalapani within its own Uttrakhand province. People in Nepal came on the streets with chanting slogans against India to leave the Kalapani. Amid the mounting pressure, the Nepal government released a statement that unilateral change in the map is unacceptable and the land is under sovereign  Nepal. Later, the Indian spokesman denies any change in the Indio-Nepal border in a recent map. The issue breaks out like fire in small Himalayan country amid two giant neighbors India and China. Kalapani is located eastward from the river Kali or Kuti Yangdi. According to the Sugauli treaty, signed between Indian British Empire and Gorkha Empire or Nepal in 1815 wordy marks in its Article 5, 'The Rajah of Nepal renounces for himself, his heirs, and successors, all claim to or connexion with the countries lying to the west of the river Kali and engages never have any concern with those or the inhabitants thereof." The treaty clearly points the Kali as a border river between India and Nepal. Indian border security force has been unilaterally camping there since the Chino-Indian war in1962. 

 India lost the twenty-one days long war against China. The situation became more sensitive in the northern border for India. After the conclusion of the war also the Kalapani area became a strategic point for India to watch on China. Bhairav Risal, a senior journalist arrived in that area as a census officer and completed work as a Nepal civil servant. He recalls now, he did not see any presence of Indian security personals there in 1959. Inhabitants of the area were the land revenue payer of Nepal and they were voters also. it is proof that the Indian army was deployed thereafter in 1959.  But the scenario is completely changed now.

  

India always wants to limit Nepal within own control because Nepal is located as a security buffer zone between two competitive India and China. Whenever Nepal realizes itself as a sovereign the graph of Indo-Nepal relation comes down to the critical point. India and China are involving to develop economic ties except for their long-running border disputes. Both signed an agreement to use Lipulake, a Nepal claimed land, for bilateral trade without concern to Nepal.  In 2015 Nepal promulgated new Constitution without fulfilling the Indian concern made anger him and imposed third blocked on Nepal for five months. After the general election, Nepal Communist Party came with a strong majority in Parliament, with the passing of time the relation of Delhi and Kathmandu seemingly the normal way. In the meantime, the border issue raises again.

More than 54 places are controversial in the Indo-Nepal border. Nepal has been raising the issue at a high diplomatic and political level too. Consequently, the secretary-level joint technical team in work, but it is in tortoise speed. Kalapani and Susta are the major border problems between the two countries that are not possible to solve without a political decision.       

Within the political differences, the relation of India Nepal has been strongly developing informal than the formal way. Nepali people are serving in the Indian army and other services since the British rule with a great contribution. Colonial India started recruiting Nepali youths in their army as Gorkhas just after the Sugaule treaty, later in the 1947 Gorkha army divided for India and British by a tripartite agreement between Nepal, India and British. After the freedom of India, the Gorkha soldiers are continuously fighting to protect India against Pakistan and China in the front line of wars. Both countries have strong cultural and People to people unavoidable relations since ancient age. The border between two is open, is one of the unique systems of the world but both are not success to manage sustainable political relations. It is not believable such as sovereign countries are not managing their border controversies. The situation indicates the problem is becoming more complex than seen on the surface.