The Nepalese Opposition Congress has declared that it will vote in favor of the amendment. (File)
Kathmandu / New Delhi:
Nepal’s parliament is holding an extraordinary session to vote on a constitutional amendment bill to update the map of the country – which includes a stretch of land in the mountains that India claims to be its own.
The House of Representatives has opened discussion on the amending bill which will be put to the vote after the deliberations have ended, said Rojnath Pandey, spokesman for the parliament, according to the PTI news agency.
He reportedly said that the House was working to vote on the bill today.
Last month, the ruling Nepalese party released the card, prompting a strong reaction from India, which called the move “unilateral” and not based on historical facts.
The Nepalese Opposition Congress had said it would vote for the amendment amid friction with India over the issue.
The new map – released last month – shows a ribbon of land east of the Kali River, protruding from the northwest tip of Nepal. The area includes the Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand as well as Limpiyadhura and Kalapani, which are highly strategic areas that India has guarded since the 1962 war with China.
New Delhi maintains that they are part of Uttarakhand.
“Such an artificial widening of land claims will not be accepted by India,” said Anurag Srivastava, spokesman for the foreign ministry, last month. “Nepal is well aware of India’s consistent position on this issue and we urge the government of Nepal to refrain from such unjustified cartographic claims and to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India”, said he added.
The head of the army, Mr. M. Naravane, said today that India has very solid relations with Nepal. “We have a very strong relationship with Nepal. We have geographic, cultural, historical and religious ties. We have very strong people to connect with. Our relationship with them has always been strong and will remain strong in the future”, said General Naravane. quoted by the ANI news agency.
A two-thirds majority of the 275 members of the Lower House of Nepal is required to pass the bill. Once the bill is passed by the lower house, it will be sent to the National Assembly where it will be subjected to a similar process. The National Assembly will have to give legislators 72 hours to propose amendments against the provisions of the bill, if necessary. Once the National Assembly has adopted the bill, it will be submitted to the President for authentication, after which the bill will be incorporated into the Constitution.
(With entries from PTI and ANI)
