By P.R. Pradhan

Vijay Chauthaiwale, chief of the External Affairs Department of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was in Kathmandu last week as the special envoy of the Indian government. Chauthaiwale, who arrived in Kathmandu on Wednesday, April 30, left home on Friday, May 2.

During his stay in Kathmandu, he held meetings with 19 political leaders, including Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, his spouse and Foreign Minister Dr Arzu Rana Deuba, Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak, Maoist leaders Barshaman Pun and Janardan Sharma, NC senior leader Dr Shekhar Koirala, NC General Secretary Gagan Thapa, among others.

According to high-level sources, Chauthaiwale visited Kathmandu in connection with the recent Pehalgam terrorist attack killing a total of 27 tourists –26 Indians and one Nepali national.

His meetings with Nepali political leaders were arranged by the Indian Embassy here.

During his meeting with Home Minister Lekhak, Chauthaiwale asked him to monitor activities in the Nepal-India international borders.

During meetings with other leaders, Chauthaiwale wished for Nepal’s support for India in the terrorist attacks in Pahalgam.

He briefed that there were Pakistan intelligence’s hands in the terrorist attacks and India is prepared to take strong revenge on Pakistan for the attacks and wished for Nepal’s strong solidarity towards the Indian action against Pakistan.

What kind of action does India taking against Pakistan, Chauthaiwale didn’t confirm but he said that Indian PM Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Dhovel would decide on the attack.

During the meeting, Chauthaiwale also expressed concern about increasing Christian and Muslim activities in Nepal and asked for curbing such activities and declaring Nepal a Hindu Satan Rastra.

He, however, confirmed that India didn’t support the restoration of the institution of monarchy in Nepal.

Furthermore, Chauthaiwale asked the Nepali leaders to curb Chinese presence in Nepal.

We can assume that the Indian leader clearly gave the message that India is preparing for a war on Pakistan and Nepal should express solidarity to India. If Nepal follows the Indian advice, then Nepal’s relations with Pakistan can be ended, furthermore, Nepal will no longer remain a non-aligned country. Earlier, during the standoff between India and China, Nepal didn’t take sides with either India or China following Nepal’s existing non-aligned foreign policy.

What should be Nepal’s role in case of a war?

Whatever the Chauthaiwale’s message be, Nepal should not give up its fundamental principle of non-aligned foreign policy, say political and diplomatic observers.  

Although it has not been proved that there was the Pakistani government’s involvement in the Pahalgam terrorist attacks, India has one-sidedly suspended the India-Pakistan Water Treaty and started to stop the natural flow of rivers originating in the Indian side.

India has launched surgical attacks, although, a full-fledged war is yet to start. Viewing the Indian attitude, it seems, it is preparing for a war and provoking Pakistan for a “final” war.

If there is a war between India and Pakistan, the Chinese sympathy may go towards Pakistan. Some Muslim countries in the Gulf and other parts may take a side with Pakistan. Both India and Pakistan are empowered with nuclear power and both the countries are not in a mood to face a defeat. If a serious war takes place in the yard of Nepal, it will obviously affect us and in the end, nuclear weapons can also be used.

Nepal should not forget that it chairs the South Asian Cooperation for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and its responsibility should be to avoid a war which cannot be won by any of the sides.

Furthermore, Nepal’s outstanding foreign policy doesn’t allow it to take sides with any one of the countries.