India, Nepal to review 1950 friendship treaty

Kathmandu: India and Nepal have agreed to “review, adjust and update” India-Nepal Friendship Treaty of 1950 and conclude negotiations on an agreement on trade in the power sector within 45 days.

A joint statement issued at the end of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Nepal that ended Monday said Modi and his Nepal counterpart Sushil Koirala had “agreed to review, adjust and update the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1950 and other bilateral agreements”.

The treaty which provides for reciprocal rights to citizens of one country in another was signed when Nepal was under the rule of the country’s erstwhile royal family.

Nepalese Maoists have often criticized the pact as being skewed in India’s favour—for instance, in its consideration of India’s security interests which was seen in Nepal as an infringement of its national sovereignty. The treaty has also enabled Nepal to overcome the disadvantages of being a land-locked country but many political groups have also criticized the pact.

“Both sides agreed that the revised treaty should better reflect the current realities and aim to further consolidate and expand the multifaceted and deep rooted relationships in a forward looking manner,” the joint statement said.

“India wants Nepal to give suggestions so that the issue can be settled once and for all. Prime Minister Modi said we should settle issues like friends,” Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson of the ministry of external affairs told reporters during a briefing on Modi’s meeting with the Nepalese leadership, Press Trust of India reported.

Modi is the first Indian prime minister to pay a bilateral visit to Nepal in 17 years.

Both prime ministers noted “with satisfaction the excellent cooperation on security related matters and directed the competent authorities on both sides to make sure that the open border, which has facilitated movements of people on both sides of the border and has been a unique feature of Nepal-India bilateral relations, is not misused by “unscrupulous elements” posing security threats to either side, it said.

Modi’s 3-4 August visit was aimed at trying to forge a new relationship with Nepal against the backdrop of moves by India’s strategic rival China trying to make inroads into Nepal in the past few years—developing tourism destinations and upgrading infrastructure.

Modi, during a speech to Nepalese constituent Assembly on Sunday, announced a $1 billion credit line for development of infrastructure and energy in Nepal.

Modi assured Nepal that India did not want to interfere in that country’s internal affairs.

He said India has no intent to “dictate” anything to Nepal which should choose its own course in its endeavour to build a stable and prosperous democratic republic.

“Nepal is a truly sovereign nation. We have always believed that it is not our job to interfere in what you do but to support you in the path you decide to take,” he said while addressing the Constituent Assembly on Sunday.

PTI contributed to this story