Nepal didn't heed our advice: Sushma Swaraj

Madhesi population in Nepal continues to block transit routes from India to protest discriminatory new constitution

The government today denied that India had enforced any blockade on the India-Nepal border and pointed out how it has made efforts to re-route essential supplies to its landlocked neighbour.

It also offered to send an all party delegation to Nepal at a time when India-Nepal relations are at a low.

Nepal is currently facing shortage of supplies as its Madhesi population continues to block transit routes from India to protest the discriminatory new constitution.

There have been anti-India protests on the streets of Kathmandu and Nepal leaders have accused India of having engineered the blockade.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today made a statement in the Rajya Sabha on a calling attention motion on 'situation in Nepal and the state of Indo-Nepal relations'.

She said India has consistently supported a broad-based, inclusive and durable Constitution in Nepal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his two visits to Nepal in 2014, advised Nepal's leadership to frame a Constitution based on 'sahmat' (consensus) rather than 'bahumat' (majority).

Swaraj said the PM, the foreign secretary and she herself has visited Nepal and repeatedly conveyed New Delhi's position to Kathmandu. "Therefore, any suggestion that our position lacked clarity or that there was lack of engagement simply has no basis," she said.

The minister said Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar visited Nepal on 18-19 September as PM's Special Envoy and advised Nepalese political leadership on a possible course of action to resolve the crisis.

"Regrettably, these cautions passed unheeded," Swaraj said. The minister said India's position is not prescriptive, but it does want the issues of perceived under-representation resolved through dialogue.

Janata Dal (United)'s Pavan Varma moved the calling attention motion. He said India-Nepal relations were 'perhaps going through the worst phase'. "We are close to handing over Nepal to China, which is of concern," Varma said. He asked "whether the Prime Minister has invested sufficient time in Nepal...It appears to be that the eyes of the Prime Minister was not on the ball".

Several members including Karan Singh (Cong), Sharad Yadav (JD-U) and Anand Sharma (Cong) suggested that since the issue was of utmost importance and needed more time, it be converted into a short-duration discussion.