This article was published in eKantipur on January 13, 2010.
India’s Interest in Nepal
Yashwant Sinha
The views of the Indian political parties converge in the protection of our national interests. But in details, there might be some differences. Nepal is the closest neighbour of India. We have a long relation of friendship and cultural affinity. India is interested in having the best possible cordial relationship with Nepal. To an extent, our strategic interests are also involved because we have an open border and there is a lot of interaction at the informal level. A large number of Nepalis work in India.
India’s interest, in this light, lies in a sovereign, friendly, peaceful and stable Nepal. India has protected and preserved its democracy through trials and tribulations and therefore we are committed to democracy in our country and elsewhere. We are committed to democracy in Nepal also; what form of democracy is for the people of Nepal to decide.
There was a great deal of misunderstanding in Nepal that the BJP was supporting the monarchy which was far from the truth because we have always said that whether Nepal will have monarchy or not is for Nepal to decide, for the representatives of Constituent Assembly (CA) to decide. In fact, I was the foreign minister when the question of the postponement of October, 2002 elections in Nepal came up. I remember telling then-Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba that postponement will do no good. I gave him examples of how we planned the elections in Jammu and Kashmir and in a disturbed Assam. I said it is possible to extend the elections over a period of time. Read the rest of this entry »