Kathmandu, Jun 20 (PTI) Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” on Thursday informed Parliament that strengthening bilateral relations with India, implementation of past agreements, and border issues were the key topics discussed during his recent visit to India.
Prachanda visited New Delhi to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 9.
Informing the House of Representatives about his visit to India, the prime minister said “strengthening Nepal-India relations, implementation of past agreements, and bilateral discussions-including border issues, among other matters came up" during his high-level discussions in New Delhi.
“Serious discussion was held regarding the implementation of the Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project, Arun Hydropower Project and cooperation in the agricultural sector,” he said.
Prachanda also defended his government’s recent decision to recall ambassadors from 11 countries, including its envoys in India and the US and appointed under the Nepali Congress' quota, three months after he terminated his alliance with the party and joined hands with former prime minister KP Sharma Oli.
Responding to queries by lawmakers, Prachanda said the envoys were recalled as per the constitutional provision, and the government was serious about adopting the policy to evaluate the performance of ambassadors on an objective basis, to strengthen the country’s interest and diplomacy.
Earlier this month, just ahead of Prachanda's official visit to India, the Nepal government recalled 11 envoys, including Nepalese ambassador to India Shankar Sharma, inviting criticism from the opposition and a section of the media.
“The government is committed to mobilising diplomatic missions and envoys in the best interest of the nation,” he said, pointing out, “As per the Ambassador Appointment Directive, 2015, the envoys can be recalled before the completion of their terms if deemed necessary.”
Only those who have been appointed as ambassadors under political quota are recalled soon after the change in the coalition, the prime minister said, adding, “Instead this time around, the envoys remained in their posts for around three months after the change in the ruling coalition”.
The government appoints some ambassadors under political quota based on recommendations made by coalition partners while it selects some career diplomats from within the ministry of foreign affairs for other countries, Prachanda underlined.
The recalled ambassadors are Sharma (India), Sridhar Khatri (USA), Gyan Chandra Acharya (United Kingdom) and Jyoti Pyakurel Bhandari (South Korea). They were appointed in the quotas allotted to the Nepali Congress when the party president Sher Bahadur Deuba headed the government in 2021. Sharma, Acharya and Khatri were recommended ambassadors in October 2021.
Other ambassadors whose terms were cut short are Naresh Bikram Dhakal (Qatar), Nawaraj Subedi (Saudi Arabia), Sharmila Parajuli Dhakal (Spain), Ram Swartha Ray Yadav (Denmark), Kanta Rizal (Israel), Dilliraj Poudel (Malaysia) and Salin Nepal (Portugal).