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By Our Reporter 

Indian Army chief general Manoj Mukund Naravane arrived in Kathmandu on Wednesday, five months after he made a controversial and insulting remark against Nepal.

On May 15, General Narvane had said that Nepal might be raising the issue of road constructed in Lipulek at the behest of some implicating China which drew wider criticism in Nepal. Even Deputy Prime Minister Ishwar Pokhrel who was then holding the portfolio of Defence Minister had condemned the remark stating that it was an insult to Nepal.

Naravane had made the controversial remark after Nepal opposed the inauguration of road built in Nepali territory by India. Although Naravane corrected the statement in June, his visit has not been welcomed by the people in Kathmandu.

In course of his three-day Nepal visit, the Indian Army chief is scheduled to meet with President Bidya Devi Bhandari, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and his counterpart Nepal Army chief Purna Chandra Thapa. Naravane is visiting Nepal at the invitation of Chief of the Army Staff (CoAS) General Purnachandra Thapa.

The visit is taking place in the wake of border disputes between the two neighbours after India published its new political map including Nepali territory on 2 November 2019.

Although the Nepali Army has stated that the visit of Indian Army Chief Naravane is regular and traditional, it is being viewed from different angles owing to the border dispute which has escalated for about a year.

President Biya Devi Bhandari is scheduled to confer the honorary title of Chief General of Nepali Army on Indian Army Chief Naravane on Thursday.

According to the Directorate of Public Relations and Information, Indian Army Chief Naravane is coming to Nepal as a part of the tradition of honouring the Chief of Army Staff of India in Nepal and vice-versa.