Overview
- India’s foreign ministry, which addressed the issue Thursday, said the Kailash Mansarovar route through Lipulekh has operated since 1954 and called Nepal’s map-based claim an untenable unilateral enlargement.
- Kathmandu set off the latest exchange Sunday by objecting to India and China planning the pilgrimage via Lipulekh, saying it was not consulted and asserting the pass lies in Nepal under the 1816 Sugauli Treaty.
- New Delhi said it is ready to hold talks if Nepal raises the matter again and repeated that boundary issues should be settled through dialogue and diplomacy.
- Nepal’s foreign ministry on Friday said it wants to resolve the border issue through diplomatic channels and restated that Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura east of the Mahakali river are inseparable parts of Nepal.
- The pass sits near the India–China–Nepal tri-junction and India opened an 80 km road to Lipulekh in 2020, which eases pilgrim travel for the June–August yatra and raises the stakes for a timely de-escalation.