Anand Singh /Thestatesman.com (Nov 18, New Delhi) :
As Nepal’s Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli has slammed India over the continuing “unofficial blockade” in the country, opposition leaders in India are critical of the Narendra Modi government for what they say is its failed foreign policy.
Oli, in a televised address on Sunday to the nation, said that Nepalis have been going through a hard time due to the blockade, which the Indian government says is due to protests on the Nepalese side of the border over its constitution.
The Modi government’s foreign policy in the case of Nepal has “completely failed”, says Janata Dal-United (JD-U) Rajya Sabha MP KC Tyagi.
He told thestatesman.com, “It is all due to the wrong foreign policy of the Modi government. The foreign policy in the case of Nepal has failed completely, and now we are finding Nepal stand up to us. Nepal is also now getting closer to China day-by-day.”
“The Madhesis are agitating and it is for the first time in the history that an Indian was killed by Nepali police, it is most unfortunate,” Tyagi said, referring to the police firing last month in Birgunj in which one Indian was killed.
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) spokesperson, Manoj Jha too slammed the Modi government and said, “The Nepal case is a textbook example of Modi’s foreign policy failure.”
“The Madhesi issue in Nepal, the way it has unfolded, shows a complete lack of any coherent thinking or strategy on the part of the Modi-led government, where India should have played a more proactive role,” Jha added.
“It is an absolute failure of foreign policy in the case of Nepal. For over 70 years, Nepal has never made any complaint,” senior Congress leader Rashid Alvi told thestatesman.com.
“The prime minister has visited Nepal more than once, but in spite of that the differences have cropped up between the two nations. And now we don’t have the cordial relationship which we were having earlier,” the Congress leader said.
Oli, in his speech, pointed out the hardships faced by his nation due to the blockade. Alluding to India, he said: “It is unthinkable that a sovereign nation faces such an inhumane and severe pain, misery and blockade in the 21st century for having a Constitution with progressive, pro-people and democratic contents through an elected Constituent Assembly with people’s overwhelming participation and democratic franchise.”
The people of Nepal have been facing acute shortage of fuel and basic commodities due to blockade of freight trucks on the border with India. The Madhesis or plains people have been protesting against the newly-adopted constitution, which they say leaves them out of the loop.
Read more at http://www.thestatesman.com/news/world/modi-government-s-foreign-policy-in-nepal-a-failure-opposition/104658.html#cE0D6wcgieXlMcp6.99