Kathmandu, June 1: Prime Minister Balendra Shah has come under sharp criticism after telling Parliament that Nepal, like India, has also encroached on territory across the Nepal-India border, a statement that has reignited debate over one of the country’s most sensitive foreign policy issues.
The controversy erupted on Sunday when Shah responded to lawmakers’ questions in the House of Representatives regarding the long-running disputes over Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura.
Addressing Parliament, Shah said he had learned after assuming office that “not only has India encroached on Nepal’s land, but Nepal has also encroached on Indian land in several places,” adding that both countries should jointly study the issue and seek a diplomatic solution.
The Prime Minister also revealed that Nepal has discussed the border issue not only with India and China but also with the United Kingdom, arguing that Britain bears historical responsibility because the roots of the dispute date back to the colonial-era boundaries of British India.
His remarks immediately drew criticism from opposition parties, former diplomats and border experts, many of whom questioned the basis of the claim that Nepal had encroached on Indian territory. Border scholar Buddhi Narayan Shrestha and other analysts argue there is no documented evidence of Nepal officially occupying Indian land, although cross-border land use and ownership disputes exist in some frontier areas.
In response to the backlash, Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a clarification, saying Shah’s comments referred to cross-border land occupation and use patterns in some border regions rather than any formal territorial claim by Nepal. The ministry stressed that the Prime Minister was referring to practical issues arising from open-border settlements, shifting river courses and unresolved demarcation concerns.
The episode has also sparked a wider debate among political observers. Some critics described the statement as a diplomatic misstep that could weaken Nepal’s longstanding position on disputed territories. Others argued that Shah may have been attempting to frame the issue as a shared border-management challenge in order to encourage fresh negotiations with New Delhi. Public reaction on social media has remained sharply divided between those calling the remarks irresponsible and those portraying them as an attempt to break years of diplomatic deadlock.
Nepal and India have already completed demarcation work along roughly 97 percent of their 1,880-kilometer border, while disputes remain concentrated in a handful of areas, most notably Kalapani, Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura and parts of Susta. Both governments have repeatedly stated that the unresolved sections should be addressed through bilateral dialogue.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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