Round The World

New Delhi, 30 September 2008

Prachanda’s Visit

PRELUDE TO TIES WITH "NEW NEPAL"

By Monish Tourangbam

 School of International Studies, JNU

Recently, India hosted an exceedingly diplomatic Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, rather than his better known alter ego, guerilla leader 'Prachanda-the fierce one.' This became known with his handling of the ongoing concerns in Nepali politics vis-à-vis India over the relevance of the 1950 Indo-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship. His studied response: Kathmandu wanted a change, but was not blaming anyone or arguing that the existing agreements were all bad.  

Last month, Nepal's first Maoist Prime Minister Dahal undertook his "goodwill" visit to India, heading a 44-member delegation, including four Ministers, government officials, heads of industry associations, business federations and journalists. The agenda included among other issues the Maoist government’s concern over the Indo-Nepal treaty, which it feels is skewed in India's favour. It sought a review of all bilateral agreements between the two neighbours.    

On its part, India accepted the long-standing concern and both the countries have agreed to take a fresh look at the 58-year old treaty, taking into account changes internationally and regionally, including the birth of a new model of governance in Nepal. It is worth remembering that both India and Bhutan had renegotiated their 1949 treaty last year after Thimpu sought changes that included more freedom in areas of foreign policy and defence.

Giving India's position, Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon said New Delhi was ready to "update" the treaty and that this had been conveyed to PM Dahal. Quizzed about whether India would accept any fundamental change in the treaty, he said, "Both sides should sit together to review…to reflect today's realities. By updating, I am not limiting our options." Asked to comment on the same issue, Prachanda said significant changes have taken place in all fields over the years and there was need to grasp the dynamics of change and move ahead. And, he wasn’t going to blame anyone

He said, "The 1950 Treaty has brought us this far…If someone says it has only worked against Nepal, this will not be a correct analysis. But, now it needs a change, to help the relationship get stronger, based on the new ground realities. The Task Force which India and Nepal had decided to set up would examine the issue." However, both sides have considered it prudent not to comment on which portions of the Treaty they would revise. This apart, no timeline has been set for the meeting between the two Foreign Secretaries in the joint statement by Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh and his Nepalese counterpart.

The efficacy of the 1954 Kosi Agreement too came into question after the devastating floods caused by a breach in Kosi embankment in Nepal, which have left over 100,000 homeless in Nepal and affected over three million lives in Bihar. As such, the two sides agreed the need for proper implementation of the Agreement to prevent such catastrophe in future. As part of an immediate package to help Kathmandu, New Delhi has agreed to release Rs.20 crore for the Nepalese victims and continue with supplies of petroleum products, wheat, rice and sugar before the festival season.

Intending to expedite work on the outstanding water projects between India and Nepal, both sides agreed to set up a three-tier joint water management mechanism. This will comprise of a ministerial-level Joint Rivers Commission, including a Secretary-level Joint Committee and a project-level technical committees for each project. This was agreed upon at a bilateral meeting between Nepal's Water Resources Minister, Bishnu Prasad Poudel and Union Water Resources Minister, Saifuddin Soz. This apart, other water resources projects were reviewed in detail, with an immediate focus on the Sapta-Kosi high dam project, Sunkosi diversion scheme and the Kamla dam project in the backdrop of the recent devastating floods affecting both the countries.

On the trade front, both the sides have agreed to look into areas of concern and take up corrective measures. Nepal assured to provide a conducive environment for Indian business, which has complained of security issues and labour problems. India, on the other hand will seek to reverse the erosion of gains to Nepal under the 1991 trade treaty. New Delhi has agreed to take a serious view of the present mechanism of trade and transit, in an effort to promote industrialisation in Nepal and create a system of sustainable and complementary bilateral trade between the two neighbours.

During Prachanda's visit, New Delhi took the opportunity to express serious concerns about Nepal's territory being used by forces inimical to India's interests. To this, Prachanda assured that his government intended to be even stricter than its predecessors. "We cannot do magic overnight, but we are taking this very seriously," he said. Asked about the links between his party and the naxalites in India, he said there are "ideological relations." But, at the same time he hinted at the different and more practical path that the Maoists in Nepal had taken by fighting elections and eventually leading the government.

The former guerilla leader said that Nepal could serve as a reference for revolutionaries and Maoists elsewhere. On his arrival in Kathmandu after his visit, Prachanda had said, "I did not go to India to establish Maoist doctrine there. I did not meet the leaders of any Indian Maoists party during my visit. I went there as the elected Prime Minister of a democratic federal republic carrying legitimate national interests at heart as advised by a national coalition government." Asked about contradictions between his party's official line which regards India as an "expansionist" nation and his upbeat views about New Delhi, he said, "Please don't mix ideology with bilateral relations."

Other than official meetings in Delhi, Prachanda was also the chief guest at a lunch hosted by the India-Nepal Parliamentary Friendship Forum, which was attended by political leaders cutting across party lines. Here too the Nepalese PM reflected on the traditional and historic ties the two countries shared and reiterated India's positive contribution toward the political transformation in his country.

Interestingly, he downplayed his recent visit to China, which broke the tradition of Nepal's top leaders first visiting India after taking office. Prachanda said it was a visit to attend the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games, clearly attempting to allay India's apprehension about growing proximity between Nepal and China. Kathmandu’s relationship with India, he said was "unassailable" and could not be compared with any other. Time will tell, whether Nepal’s efforts to package ‘diplomat’ Prachanda's visit to India as his "first formal political visit" to any country pays dividends. ----INFA

 (Copyright, India News & Feature Alliance)