Kathmandu, 27 Aug: When the Nepali rulers were weak, India had set up 18 military check posts in the northern region of Nepal for 18 years. Although 17 check posts that entered Nepal in 2008 BS were returned in 2026 BS after an agreement between the two countries, the army that had voluntarily settled in Kalapani has been here for 63 years. When the Indian army was forcibly settled in Kalapani, the Panchayat system, including King Mahendra, remained a mute spectator. Although a debate on this issue started after the advent of multi-party politics, no meaningful initiative has been taken to return the army.
It was decided to return 17 military check posts that India had been maintaining for a long time in 2026 BS, but the camp in Kalapani, Darchula, was not operated. Due to the Kalapani camp, settlements including Gunji, Nabi, Kuti, and 370 square kilometers of land in the area, up to Lipulek Pass and Limpiyadhura, have been encroached upon.
India announced on 23 February 1952 (11 Falgun 2008) that it would send a ‘military mission’ to Nepal, at the request of the Nepalese government, to reduce the size of the Nepali Army and enhance its professional skills and capabilities. The military reorganization program also called for reducing the size of the Nepali Army from 25,000 to 6,000.
India had issued an official statement saying, ‘At the request of the Government of Nepal, the Government of India has agreed to send a military mission to assist in the training and restructuring of the Nepali Army. The mission, consisting of 20 officers in the first phase, will depart for Kathmandu on February 27. It can be further strengthened later if the Government of Nepal deems it necessary. The mission will be headed by a Major General.’
Reasons for Non-Withdrawal from Kalapani
Meanwhile, in 1962, during the Indo-China War, the Indian army entered Nepali territory, Kalapani. ‘The Indo-China War took place in 1962. Chinese soldiers had already entered the Assam region in large numbers on the east. King Mahendra’s Home Minister Bishwabandhu Thapa has said in various contexts that Nehru thought at that time that if the Chinese soldiers had entered from the Mansarovar side instead of the east, they would have reached Delhi soon. After that, India adopted a policy of using the Kalapani region strategically. Because there is a large plain there.’
On the Indian map, that (Kalapani) area was seen as an insecure area without security mechanisms. There was no security post of Nepal there either. It was a neglected area, as there were no settlements. The Indians analyzed that if the Chinese entered from there, they could reach Delhi. During the fighting, the Indians stationed security personnel there overnight. They stationed soldiers without any discussion, even though they knew that it was Nepalese territory.
Thapa quotes King Mahendra in the book, “Currently, there is a war going on between India and China. When we raise this issue, it is as if we are taking a side. After the war is over, this issue should be raised and a solution should be found.”
At that time, India was in trouble and Prime Minister Nehru contacted King Mahendra to ask him to stay, which is why the king adopted a policy of silence, his own government colleagues have shared.
Old politicians and diplomats have commented that King Mahendra used the Indian army’s presence in Kalapani as an opportunity to appease India by not protesting.
‘If the king had spoken about the Indian army’s presence in Kalapani at that time, the situation would have been different now.’ He says that he has also heard that Nehru wrote a letter to Mahendra about the presence of the army in Kalapani.
After the phased talks, Indian soldiers started withdrawing from Nepal from 4 Bhadra 2027. However, the army of Kalapani remained here. King Birendra, who ruled for a long time after King Mahendra, also seems to have remained silent on the issue of the presence of Indian troops in Kalapani.
