Former
Prime Minister and Coordinator of Naya Shakti Nepal Baburam Bhattarai has said
that there is a lack of ‘proper understanding’ in India about Nepal. Speaking
to Post before concluding his visit to India on Tuesday, leader Bhattarai said
mainly young generation of India has some flawed understanding about Nepal and
bilateral relations between the two countries. The former prime minister
maintained that there is a need of dialogue, debate and discussions to rebuild
the bilateral relations in the change political context Nepal and India.
Bhattarai
made such remark after extensive discussions with Indian intellectual and
policy makers during his seven-day stay in New Delhi. Bhattarai
underlined the need for building a bilateral relation between two countries at
the top political levels. Bhattarai was of the view that there has been a huge
change in the political scenario of both countries and bilateral relation
should be rebuilt accordingly. He was referring that Nepal has entered into a
new era after the promulgation of constitution in 2015 and there is the
emergence of Bharatiya Janata Party as a single largest ruling party in
India.
“There
should be dialogue at the top level regarding the interest of both countries.
We should move ahead addressing those concerns,” Bhattarai said. He opined that
India should not be engaged in micro-management of Nepal. “India’s interest in
micro-management will only increase the anti-Indian sentiment in Nepal. It will
benefit the parties like CPN-UML,” he said. Bhattarai arrived here for
attending a counter terrorism conference, holding talks with Indian side and
participating in the party’s programs. Bhattarai, a senior Maoist party, has
been consistently maintaining that differences with India should be resolved
through diplomatic channel instead of taking to streets. During the insurgency
in Nepal, leader Bhattarai was also accused of being soft to India.
During his
interaction, Bhattarai gave a message to the Indian side to reflect on its past
positions. At the same time, he said, India too needs to reflect and look
ahead. “It has historically played a role in Nepal’s internal politics. But
India’s position has often been inconsistent, and its own priorities and
messages have not been clear,” the former prime minister said. Bhattarai said
though India emphasized the issue of inclusive constitution, it didn’t not
support the pro-inclusion forces. “But if this was a priority for India, why
did it not support pro-inclusion forces in the first CA. At that time, pro
inclusion forces were stronger, Maoist and Madhes were in fact allies,” he
said. The first CA was dissolved without drafting a new constitution when
Maoist was the largest party.
He said
there is a need of clear commitment from India for Nepal’s economic
development. “Our priority for now is economic growth, infrastructure and
prosperity. We cannot achieve this without India’s active support,” he added. In
all interactions, Indian diplomats and policy makers appreciated his role to
integrate the Maoist combatants when he was prime minister in 2011 and peaceful
democratic transition of Maoist party.
During his
stay in the Indian Capital, Bhattarai met General Secretary of Bharatiya Janata
Party Ram Madav, and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, among other leaders.
Though his visit would not affect the national politics, it has contributed to
kick-start a fresh debate on rebuilding the bilateral relations, he told the
Post.
Ekantipur
22/03/2017
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