Controversy over old map of Nepal in Oli’s Dussehra greeting card

Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli was at the centre of a new controversy Saturday following the use of the country’s old map in his Vijaya Dashami greeting card which had the national emblem and his portrait printed on it.

Following escalation of the boundary dispute with India this summer, Nepal published a new map to include areas of the Indian state of Uttarakhand.

The Opposition criticised him for using the old map in the card, saying he was trying to “backtrack on the issue, undermining the spirit behind the national consensus on the territorial issue”.

Surya Thapa, the PM’s press advisor, said the map in the greeting card was the new one, but because of its small size, the new areas were not visible.