Kalapani an integral part: Nepal objects inclusion of unresolved territory as part of India in new maps

A few days after India redrew the political map of Jammu and Kashmir after scrapping Article 370, the Nepal government strongly objected to the inclusion of 'Kalapani' under the Indian Territory. In the new political maps released by India on Saturday, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is part of the newly created Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir while Gilgit-Baltistan is in the Union Territory of Ladakh. However, the Nepal government made it clear that Kalapani is an integral part of the country and that talks are still on between New Delhi and Kathmandu over this "unresolved" area. The country's foreign ministry said, "The Nepal government firmly believes that the Kalapani is a part of Nepal." The press statement stated that foreign secretaries of both countries have been assigned the responsibility to resolve the remaining border-related issues between India and Nepal. "The remaining issues related to the border should be resolved in bilateral consensus and any unilateral actions will be unacceptable to the Nepal government," said the press statement. India on Saturday had released fresh maps of the newly created Union Territories (UTs) of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh and the map of India depicting these UTs. The inclusion of Kalapani into the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand has been objected by Nepal as it considers the unresolved territory a part of the Darchula district in Nepal. Ministry of External Affairs is yet to respond to the developments coming from Kathmandu. While the two countries have made a lot of headway in ties, sensitive issues such as border need to be handled carefully and New Delhi has to be mindful of Nepal's concerns. "The Nepal government is committed to protecting the country's external borders and it is determined on its principled position that such border disputes with the neighboring countries should be resolved through diplomatic channels after assessing the historical documents, facts, and evidence," added the press statement issued by Nepal's foreign ministry. Source: India Today