Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday held wide-ranging talks with his Nepalese counterpart K.P.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday held wide-ranging talks with his Nepalese counterpart K.P. Sharma Oli, who arrived here on Friday for a six-day visit aimed at “clearing misunderstandings” between the two nations.
Following the meeting India described Mr Oli’s visit as “forward-looking” one, which was depicted by its “tone and tenor”.
Addressing the media here, foreign secretary S. Jaishankar said assurances given on addressing grievances within Nepal, if left unaddressed, may “detract” the country from stability.
When asked whether India was satisfied with Nepal’s assurance on issues relating to the new Constitution, “This was not a recriminatory visit. This was a forward-looking visit. It was a visit in a cooperative sense.”
India offered Nepal a grant of $250 million for post-earthquake relief assistance, even as both the nations signed nine agreements ranging from development of road infrastructure in Terai region of the Himalayan kingdom to setting up of a Muzaffarpur-Dhalkebar power transmission line.
Mr Modi had, reportedly, conveyed to Mr Oli that success of its new Constitution will depend on resolution of contentious issues through “consensus and dialogue” in a time-bound manner as both sides held extensive talks with focus on repairing ties soured in the wake of a four-month-long agitation by the Indian-origin Madhesi community.
During the meeting, Mr Modi stressed that Nepal’s stability was linked to India’s security.
After the meeting, Mr Modi tweeted, “India’s assistance has always been constructive, our actions have been in line with the priorities of people of Nepal.”
Before the PM-level talks, Ms Swaraj called on Mr Oli, during which he conveyed to her that Nepal is and will remain a “reliable” friend of India.
During the meeting with Ms Swaraj, Mr Oli had said that both the nations have a natural and civilisational relationship, and he is on a mending of fences visit.
It holds a lot of significance in the aftermath of the strains which had appeared in the bilateral relations after the Madhesis had blocked the transit points between the two nations and when India had directed Nepal to make changes in its Constitution.
