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BNAC Statement: End the Political Crisis in Nepal and in Indo-Nepal Relations

London

Issuing a press statement today, the Britain-Nepal Academic Council (BNAC) has expressed deep concerns about the current political situation in Nepal and the crisis in Nepal-India relations.

The Executive Committee of the BNAC, which consists of 14 academics from the universities of Edinburgh, Leeds, Liverpool John Moores, London, Oxford, and West of Scotland, and from the Centre for Nepal Studies UK, have condemned the violence used both by the Nepalese state and by a minority of Madheshi and Tharu movement supporters in confronting each other and other people. Similarly, they have condemned the unofficial blockade imposed by the Indian state, which has caused considerable hardship for the people of Nepal and severe damage to the economy; any rise and potential spread of communalism or racism between different groups; and the complacent and narrowly self-interested attitudes of the majority of senior Nepali politicians for their failure to defuse the situation through negotiations.

They have called upon the Government of Nepal and Madheshi and Tharu political leaders and activists to shun violence, engage in political negotiations, and agree to an early resolution of the issues through constitutional amendments in order to avert “the looming humanitarian crisis in Nepal”.

The statement also urges the Government of India “to ensure that the rights of Nepal as a land-locked country under international law are respected, that the vulnerability of Nepal is recognised, and that the smooth flow of goods, including essential supplies, across the Indo-Nepal border remains unimpeded.” Similarly, the statement asks Britain as a major bilateral donor to encourage all parties to end the crisis.

For full statement, please click this link.

Note to editors:

The Britain-Nepal Academic Council was established on 23 May 2000 at a large meeting at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London of British academics and researchers interested in various aspects of Nepal. The objective of the Council is to promote academic and scholarly links between Britain and Nepal through, inter alia, collaborative research, exchange programmes and organisation of annual lectures, and seminars on areas of mutual interest to both British and Nepali academics and researchers. Prof. Surya Subedi, who was the founding chairperson of the Council, served in this capacity for ten years before handing over responsibilities to Prof. Michael Hutt in 2009. Prof. David Gellner, who is the current Chairman, took the position on 25 April 2014.