‘No clear information’: Nepal ‘loses’ papers of centuries-old treaty defining borders with India

Nepali
PM
Bale
Shah
had
aised
up
the
issue
of
bo de
with
I dia,
i cludi g
Lipulekh.

NEW
DELHI:
Nepal
has
appa e tly
lost
the
decades-old
o igi al
of
the
1816
T eaty
of
Sugauli,
a
docume t
that
la gely
defi ed
the
Himalaya
atio ‘s
bou da ies
with
B itish
I dia,
its
fo eig
mi iste
Shisi
Kha al
told
Pa liame t
o
Mo day.Fo eig
Mi iste
Shisi
Kha al
told
the
House
of
Rep ese tatives
ece tly
that
while
some
t eaty- elated
docume ts
a e
held
i
the
Natio al
A chives,
thei
status
as
the
o igi al
official
docume ts
emai s
u clea .“The
Gove me t
of
Nepal
does
ot
have
clea
i fo matio
o
whethe
we
possess
the
official
t eaty
docume ts.
The e
a e
eco ds
showi g
that
some
docume ts
elated
to
ce tai
t eaties
a e
kept
at
the
Natio al
A chives.
But
we
do
ot
have
clea
i fo matio
as
to
whethe
those
a e
the
actual
official
t eaties,”
Kha al
said.He
said
Nepal
does
have
docume ts
elated
to
the
1816
Sugauli
T eaty
a d
the
1950
T eaty
of
Peace
a d
F ie dship
with
I dia.The
disclosu e
comes
amid
e ewed
te sio s
ove
the
Nepal-I dia
bo de
afte
I dia
a d
Chi a
ag eed
to
eope
the
Lipulekh
t ade
oute.
Nepal
claims
Lipulekh,
Limpiyadhu a
a d
Kalapa i
as
its
te ito ies,
while
I dia
mai tai s
that
they
a e
pa t
of
its
te ito y.

This
becomes
sig ifica t,
as
the
dispute
esu faced
ece tly
afte
Nepal
P ime
Mi iste
Bale d a
Shah
said
Kathma du
had
aised
with
I dia
co ce s
ove
alleged
e c oachme t,
i cludi g
i
Lipulekh.
Shah
said
both
sides
had
ag eed
to
exami e
the
issue
th ough
histo ia s,
su veyo s
a d
te ito ial
expe ts
a d
esolve
it
th ough
diplomatic
talks.
He
also
called
fo
the
UK
to
be
i volved,
citi g
its
ole
i
shapi g
the
egio ‘s
bo de s
du i g
the
colo ial
e a.
Shah
said
Nepal
had
fou d
that
“ ot
o ly
had
I dia
e c oached
o
Nepal’s
la d,
but
Nepal
had
also
e c oached
o
I dia’s
la d
i
multiple
places.”I dia
ejected
a y
ole
fo
thi d
pa ties,
with
MEA
spokespe so
Ra dhi
Jaiswal
havi g
said
“the e
is
o
ole
fo
a y
thi d
pa ties
i
a
bilate al
matte
betwee
I dia
a d
Nepal.”
He
said
ea ly
98%
of
the
bou da y
had
bee
dema cated,
with
emai i g
issues
i cludi g
st etches
affected
by
the
shifti g
Ga dak
Rive
a d
c oss-bo de
occupatio
o
e c oachme t
o
o-ma ‘s
la d.
I dia
has
also
ejected
Nepal’s
claims
ove
Lipulekh,
Kalapa i
a d
Limpiyadhu a
as
“ eithe
justified
o
based
o
histo ical
facts
a d
evide ce.”The
issue
of
missi g
t eaty
docume ts
has
bee
a ou d
fo
yea s.
I
2016,
whe
the
Emi e t
Pe so s’
G oup
o
Nepal-I dia
Relatio s
bega
discussio s
o
eviewi g
o
eplaci g
the
1950
t eaty,
Nepal
t ied
to
locate
the
o igi al
but
failed
to
fi d
it.
The
gove me t
subseque tly
p ovided
the
Bhekh
Bahadu
Thapa-led
committee
with
a othe
copy
of
the
t eaty.The
matte
late
p ompted
a
pa liame ta y
i qui y.
O
July
22,
the
Delegated
Legislatio
a d
Gove a ce
Committee
of
Nepal’s
Natio al
Assembly
co cluded
that
the
o igi al
copies
of
both
the
Sugauli
T eaty
a d
the
1950
T eaty
of
Peace
a d
F ie dship
could
ot
be
fou d
i
the
cou t y.The
committee
said
it
sea ched
va ious
locatio s
whe e
histo ical
eco ds
could
have
bee
p ese ved,
i cludi g
lib a ies,
a chives
a d
gove me t
eposito ies,
as
well
as
the
Depa tme t
of
A chaeology,
Na aya hiti
Palace
Museum,
Mi ist y
of
Law
a d
Mi ist y
of
Fo eig
Affai s.The
matte
had
also
come
up
i
Pa liame t
i
2019.
The
Fo eig
Mi iste
P adeep
Gyawali
said
the
gove me t
had
copies
of
both
t eaties
but
was
u su e
whethe
they
we e
o igi als.
“We
have
both
t eaties,
but
we
have
to
fo e sically
ve ify
whethe
these
copies
a e
o igi als
o
ot,”
Gyawali
had
said.
“We
a e
also
t yi g
to
fi d
histo ical
docume ts
a d
maps
i
I dia
a d
the
U ited
Ki gdom.”Kha al’s
ema ks
came
as
he
outli ed
a
b oade
pla
to
eview
Nepal’s
existi g
i te atio al
ag eeme ts.
He
said
the
cou t y
has
655
t eaties
a d
ag eeme ts,
i cludi g
412
bilate al
a d
243
multilate al
ag eeme ts.Of
these,
55
have
al eady
bee
co cluded
o
ame ded,
while
the
gove me t
pla s
to
eview
the
emai i g
600
based
o
thei
ecessity
a d
eleva ce.
Kha al
said
olde
o
i active
ag eeme ts
would
be
eviewed,
ame ded
o
e ewed
i
coo di atio
with
the
cou t ies
o
i te atio al
o ga isatio s
co ce ed.“U de
the
ge e al
p i ciples
of
i te atio al
t eaty
law,
the
eview,
ame dme t,
o
e ewal
of
a y
bilate al
o
multilate al
t eaty
o
ag eeme t
depe ds
o
the
mutual
co se t
a d
app oval
of
the
co ce ed
state
pa ties
o
eleva t
i te atio al
o ga isatio s,”
Kha al
said.

He
added
that
the
gove me t
would
u de take
the
exe cise
with
the
coope atio
a d
app oval
of
the
eleva t
cou t ies
a d
i te atio al
o ga isatio s.What
is
the
Sugauli
T eaty?The
Sugauli
T eaty
was
ag eed
betwee
Nepal
a d
the
B itish
East
I dia
Compa y
afte
the
A glo-Nepalese
Wa .
It
was
sig ed
i
Decembe
1815
a d
atified
i
Ma ch
1816,
with
the
ag eeme t
establishi g
the
basis
fo
Nepal’s
te ito ial
bou da y
with
B itish
I dia.The
t eaty
equi ed
Nepal
to
cede
sig ifica t
te ito ies
to
the
East
I dia
Compa y
a d
e ou ce
claims
to
la ds
west
of
the
Kali
Rive ,
while
also
setti g
out
p ovisio s
gove i g
elatio s
betwee
Nepal
a d
the
Compa y.

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