KATHMANDU, Nov 6: Various political parties and student organizations have strongly objected to a recently-unveiled Indian political map that has placed Kalapani, a Nepali territory, inside Indian borders.

Releasing the new Indian political map on November 2, the Indian Home Ministry placed Kalapani inside Indian borders.

Nepali officials maintain that there is enough evidence to prove Kalapani as Nepal's territory. In its political map, Nepal has always included Kalapani within its territory.

Nepal Workers Peasants Party (NWPP) took out a protest rally in Bhaktapur against the Nepali border encroachment by India on Wednesday.

The rally that started from Kamal Vinayak marched along the different parts of the city and turned into an assembly at Surya Vinayak.  Addressing the gathering, NWPP's Secretary Prem Suwal urged the government to take up the issue of the Indian border encroachment to the international arena as early as possible.  

"The trend shows that Nepal's major political parties have failed to strongly oppose the Indian border encroachment whenever they are in power," he said.

He went on to say that Nepal failed to take up the issue of recent Indian intervention in Jammu and Kashmir during the United Nations General Assembly this year.

"As a consequence, the Indian government has started encroaching upon the Nepali territories like Kalapani while infringing the Nepali sovereignty. It is our diplomatic failure," he said.

The student wings of the ruling NCP and the main opposition Nepali Congress staged a mass demonstration against the Indian move. 

In their separate press statements, Sajha Party, Bibeksheel Nepali Dal, and Rishi Kattel-led Nepal Communist Party have strongly opposed the Indian political map that has placed Kalapani inside Indian borders.

Similarly, the Netra Bikram Chand-led Nepal Communist Party has unveiled a week-long protest against the Indian move. The protest includes burning the effigy of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Even days after India released the political map placing Kalapani as its Indian territory, the government agencies are tight-lipped. However, Rajan Bhattarai, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's foreign affairs advisor told media on Wednesday that Kalapani and Lipulekh are Nepali territories. "The government will take up the matter with the Indian government. All border disputes need to be resolved through diplomatic channels," he further said.  

Earlier on Tuesday, the spokesperson of the main opposition party Nepali Congress Bishwa Prakash Sharma and chairman of the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party Kamal Thapa took to Twitter urging the Oli-led government to take up the issue with Indian government while condemning the encroachment of Nepali territory Kalapani by the Indian side.

On social media, people from various walks of life including civil society have pointed out the big brother attitude of the southern neighbor.

The territory has been illegally occupied by Indian security forces after India faced humiliating defeat with China during the 1962 war, according to several former Nepali government officials who served in Darchula district that borders the Indian state of Uttarakhand. 

In India's new boundary map, Kalapani has been placed in newly-created Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.  

The new development comes four months after the Modi-led Indian government abrogated Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, ending a special status given to Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.

 
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