By Our Reporter
Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda is now preparing to pay a visit to India in a bid to woo the Indian leadership so that he does not have to feel insecure about Kathmandu’s throne as in 2008.
The PM learnt a lesson during his first stint as Prime Minister that he could not survive in power for a long time unless India feels comfortable. In 2008, after becoming the PM following the Constituent Assembly election, he had first flown to China breaching the practice of visiting India by any PM elected in Nepal. And his Beijing trip during the 2008 Olympics became costly, he had to step down in nine months despite emerging as the most powerful party in the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections.
Earlier, the Indian media had reported that Prime Minister Dahal is likely to visit India on April 28. But now he may visit India only in May, as the date is not fixed yet.
The appointment of NP Saud as Foreign Minister last week was a step towards easing his Indian tour.
However, the Cabinet meetings held on recent two Tuesdays did not discuss the issue.
It is not clear what agendas the two prime ministers will discuss. But many suspects in Kathmandu that PM Prachanda is likely to offer a few more hydro projects to India during his three-day sojourn. It means Nepal will be losing one or two additional rivers to India. But Prachanda may not raise the issue of Kalapani and border encroachment by India.
Air routes via Bhairahawa and Kathmandu-Raxaul railways could be agendas because the two new airports built by Nepal have not come into operation because India has not provided its sky for the landing and take-off of the planes. However, border issues may not be raised considering the situation of the power equation in Kathmandu, because NC, the key party in the present ruling coalition does not dare to raise such issues.
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