Aiming to break the ice between two age-old friends, Indian Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane will embark on a three-day visit to Nepal on Wednesday. Relations between the two neighbours have not been rosy for some time, especially after Kathmandu released a new political map in May that claimed Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani in its territory. India made serious objections to the map, which was subsequently adopted by Nepal parliament through a constitutional amendment.
So far, both sides have yet to hold border talks over this contentious issue.
General Narvane will land in Kathmandu at the invitation of Nepal’s Chief of the Army Staff General Purna Chandra Thapa. According to a statement issued by the Nepal Army, the main highlight of the visit will be the conferment of the rank of an honorary general of the Nepali Army to General Naravane by Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari on November 5 amidst a special ceremony. It is a historic tradition between Nepal and India, where each country confers the honorary rank to each other's army chief since 1950.
Naravane’s visit will be the first high-level visit of an Indian dignitary in a while. Though, a fortnight back, Samant Kumar Goel, the chief of India’s Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) made a short visit (less than 24 hours) to Kathmandu, but this was considered unscheduled and unofficial.
General Naravane is also scheduled to meet with Prime Minister and Defence Minister K. P. Sharma Oli. Besides meeting with his Nepalese counterpart, General Naravane will also address the officers at the Army Command and Staff College, Shivapuri.
Nepalese Army Major General Binoj Basnyat (retired) feels that the conferring of an honorary rank to General Naravane could help restore ties soured by the border issue. "It signifies the political desire to revisit the causes of distrust and to resume traditional practices and expedite other mechanisms," he said while adding that the visit stresses that military diplomacy has been a backbone of India-Nepal relationships and an opportunity for the government and the opposition to bring forward issues that could set a new course.
Observers say General Naravane had upset Nepalese authorities with his comment in early May, alleging Nepal’s response to the opening of the Lipulekh road had been at the “behest of someone else”—hinting at a Chinese role without naming Beijing. A few days later, Nepal came out with its own map claiming several disputed border territories including Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura—which are currently administered by India.
However, a month later, General Naravne issued a statement saying India and Nepal share a special relationship. During a ceremony at the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun, General Navane said, "We have geographical, cultural, historical, religious linkages. We have very strong people-to-people connect. Our relation with them has always been strong and will remain strong in the future.”
Role of the Gorhas in India-Nepal ties
Nepal is the only foreign country whose nationals serve and die for the Indian Army. Close to 40,000 Gorkhas are currently serving in the seven Gorkha regiments of the Indian Army, which has both Indian and Nepali Gorkha soldiers. These Gorkha regiments have won numerous gallantry awards in battles including two Param Vir Chakras. The Gorkha regiment has given many Chiefs to the Indian Army including the legendary Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw as well as Chief General Dalbir Suhag and General Bipin Rawat.
In June, China tried to draw a wedge between the two countries by commissioning the Kathmandu-based China Study Centre to find out why Nepalis join the Indian Army. The project was to study what areas of Nepal recruits hail from as well as their social-economic impact and their level of interest in joining the armed forces of foreign countries. The Chinese military is trying to put pressure on the Nepalese government to stop its youth from joining Indian forces.
However, the Nepalese Gorkha maintain that joining the Indian Army was a tradition, accepted as a norm in the country and among the community.
According to a tripartite agreement between India, Britain and Nepal, signed in 1947, seven of the 11 existing regiments of the Gorkhas in the British Indian Army joined the Indian Army while the other four joined the British Army. However, last year, Nepalese Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali called the 1947 Tripartite Agreement “irrelevant” in the "changed political context".
"The visit will be a great significance if [it marks] the beginning of other bilateral diplomatic mechanisms," Maj Gen Basnyat added.