Raise issues of national interest while in India: KP Sharma Oli to Sher Bahadur Deuba

“At this moment, extensive talks and discussions about the matters should be held with the neighbour during the visit so as to seek permanent solutions to frequent problems of floods caused by border rivers in the Terai region,” he said. He said the bilateral energy policy unveiled by India recently was not in Nepal’s interest and “would contribute nothing” to promote the Himalayan country’s energy sector.

He said Nepal as the current chair of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation should play an important role to de-escalate geopolitical and other regional tensions. Oli also asked Deuba to discuss the 1950 Peace and Friendship Treaty with India. The treaty establishing a close strategic bilateral relationship has often been criticised by some political parties here as being skewed in India’s favour.

On the demands by Madhesi people for a Constitution amendment to give more political powers the community, Oli said his party could have supported it had the proposal come through an “appropriate” channel and was based on consensus. Nepal’s parliament yesterday failed to pass the Constitution amendment bill, aimed at addressing the two main demands of the Madhesi people – more representation in the Parliament and redrawing of provincial boundaries.

Madhesis, mostly of Indian-origin, launched a prolonged agitation between September 2015 and February last year against the implementation of the new Constitution which they felt marginalised the Terai community.

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