India needs to think of creative ways to get around Nepal’s stand on Kalapani, says Lt. Gen. Shokin Chauhan (Retd), former DG Assam Rifles who was a guest on The Gist speaking about his book Bridging Borders.
Bridging Borders is a history of the India-Nepal relationship and in fact draws from Gen Chauhan’s Ph.D thesis on the same subject. Add to that Chauhan was commissioned into the Gurkha Rifles, and his troops are largely from Nepal.
He visited that country during recruitment drives and served as defence attache in Kathmandu, developing a perspective which helped him write this book.
Chauhan believes the presence of thousands of Gurkha ex-servicemen who served in the Indian Army is a leverage that India is not exploiting. They are influential in the areas they live and can help shape ideas and opinions in favour of India, he said.
This is important given the entry of China as a key strategic player in Nepal. Today China works with the communist parties of that country, with the intention of bringing them into its zone of influence.
Chauhan recalls telling his Nepali hosts on visits there that once the northern border is open, there is nothing to stop China from rolling all the way down to the plains. For India that means the current, largely benign border with Nepal, could turn into a nightmare of infiltration and smuggling.
Recall that the Indian border with Nepal covers the west, south and east, stretching over 1,700-km. India will face Chinese pressure on all these fronts.
Although an army officer, Chauhan has some keen insights into Indian foreign policy and how it works in Nepal. He says India has to do more to understand the Nepali psyche, their insecurity vis a vis India despite the cultural comfort and familiarity it provides.
