The geographical location of India has been one of the important reasons for the Indian government to worry about it since its Independence. The neighboring nations of India have a history of posing a threat to the protection of Indian boundaries. As two of the neighboring countries of India came to its existence after a partition from India i.e. Pakistan and Bangladesh, land disputes with the two countries have been a prominent one. The war-driven history between India and Pakistan has been one of the longest land driven disputes between two nations, where Pakistan has occupied a prominent part of Jammu & Kashmir and through its terrorist activities every now and then attempts to pollute the peace in India. Bangladesh and India have had territorial disputes, wherein the two nations have always tried to discuss the issues in a diplomatic way and as a result a sense of peace and harmony has always been maintained between the two border sharing nations. The recent Land Boundary Agreement between both nations according to which 111 border enclaves has to be transferred to Bangladesh in exchange for 51 border enclaves that will be a part of India, marks the victory of the Indian Diplomacy in ending a long-running dispute between the two nations. The third Neighboring nation and the biggest competitor to India in Asia, China continues to be a major challenge to the boundaries India shares with the nation. Like Pakistan, a war between the two nations finds its place in history due to territorial disputes. The baseless claims by the Chinese on the north-eastern states of India have always kept the relations between the two nation’s heated up. The visionary profitable vested interest of China in Pakistan occupied Kashmir of India, is also a threat for the Republic of India to watch for, along with the rising Chinese influence on the ports of India’s waterways neighbor Sri Lanka.
The new name added in this list of disputed neighbor is a nation that holds a significant role in India’s protection of boundaries from China and a nation that is very much similar to India in terms of religious and cultural beliefs. Nepal is an important neighbor of India and occupies a special significance in its foreign policy because of the geographic, historical, cultural, and economic linkages/ties that span centuries. The treaty of peace and friendship between the two nations has been the pillar of relation for the two countries over the years. However, in the past 5-7 years the relationship between the two nations has been a biter-sour one. Once again the two nations are in a face-off due to a land dispute among them. The two nations have a land disagreement mainly on two places, one of them being Kalapani in Nepal’s northwest and Susta to its south near Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh being the second one.
The recent dispute is related to the Kalapani region. The territory is strategically important to India as it is the point where India, China(Tibet) and Nepal meet. After the Indo-China war of 1962 this region has been under the Indian control. India claim’s the Kalapani region to be a part of the Pithoragarh district in Uttarakhand, in contrast to Nepal’s claim of the region being a part of its Dharchula district in Sudurpaschim Pradesh. The border of the Kalapani district is demarked by the Mahakali river. Nepal claims this river as its western border with India and claims that the land falling to the east as its territory. The main reason for the dispute arises out of the disagreement between the two nations on the origin of the river. Nepal propagates that Lipu Gad, one of the tributaries of the Kali river that merges into the main river at Kalapani is river Kali up to its source to the east of the Lipu Lekh Pass. India, however, considers Kalapani, where all the tributaries including Lipu Gad merge, to be the point of origin of the Mahakali river.
The whole dispute came into the limelight after India constructed a road connecting the Lipulekh pass with the Kailash-Mansarovar route in China. In return the Nepal government protested to this act by the Indian counterpart. The ruling Nepali Communist party had to face a range of protest my other political parties in Nepal and as a result the Government of Nepal passed a resolution in the parliament of Nepal to issue a new map. Nepal’s newly released map shows the disputed territories of Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh, and Kalapani within its borders. In retaliation to this the Indian government has expressed its anguish over this act of Nepal. It is visible that a tectonic shift in Nepal’s aggressive policy comes from the backing of China. The vicious attempts of China to expand its influence in Nepal is not hidden from anyone. The recent act of claiming Mount Everest to be falling under China is an indication of the ongoing attempt of China to infiltrate in Nepal. The Indian government too needs to understand that Nepal cannot be dealt with the same diplomacy policy through which Pakistan or China are being dealt with. To sort out issues with Nepal the only method adopted should be the counterparts of both the nation sitting across tables to discuss the issues. It is widely evident that China in the existing pre-condition doesn’t want this and as a reason is instigating Nepal to adopt an aggressive mode and refusing talks with India. Indian diplomacy needs to adopt a softer way to handle the ongoing dispute and should try to assure Nepal and its people about India’s commitment to respecting the integrity and sovereignty of Nepal.
An aggressive diplomacy policy with Nepal will give an advantage to China to influence Nepal the same way it has influenced Pakistan. India can never afford to see Nepal leaning towards China, and granting China access to Indo-Nepal borders in the coming future. India shouldn’t do the mistake of stopping the supply of essential commodities and things on which Nepal independent of India, as stooping these will have a negative impact on India on the Nepalese population. India should maintain the policy of keeping away from the internal affairs of Nepal, meanwhile, in the spirit of friendship India should guide the nation towards more inclusive rhetoric. With its immense strategic relevance in the Indian context as an Indian security concern, stable and secure Nepal is one requisite which India can’t afford to overlook.