Fresh row breaks out as Nepal detains 13 Indian border guards

India-Nepal ties hit another flashpoint on Sunday after 13 personnel of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) were detained by the Nepal Armed Police Force (APF) in Jhapa (Nepal).

They were released after several hours in custody.

While India contended that only two of the personnel, who were unarmed, had inadvertently crossed the border while chasing ‘smugglers’, and 11 had followed to negotiate their release, Nepali officials accused them of carrying weapons without permission into civilian areas. “The police did not arrest them first. They were captured and disarmed by the locals themselves who then called us to come and arrest the Indian SSB guards,” Thakur Gyawali, Superintendent of Police of Jhapa, told The Hindu .

Admitting that the SSB personnel were in the wrong for entering Nepali territory without permission, DG SSB B.D. Sharma said the situation was resolved after he and chief of the APF Kesh Raj Onta spoke to each other. Sources said the government would not react officially, so as not to further harm bilateral relations that have deteriorated since Nepal promulgated a Constitution that India has objected to. However, the government of Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli has consistently accused India of fuelling Madhesi protests against the Constitution, a charge India denies. The competing narratives have led to an all-out propaganda war between New Delhi and Kathmandu this week, with the Ministry of External Affairs flying in the first of two delegations of journalists to Birgunj and Kathmandu. An official said the visits were part of a “media outreach.” In response, the Nepali embassy has decided to organise visits by Indian journalists to Nepal to “show the impact” of the blockade on citizens.

Data that may be helpful:

Important Points:-

• Sashastra Seema Bal or SSB, is one of the Central Armed Police Forces that serves the Republic of India. Though often loosely referred to as a paramilitary force, it is in fact not one of the three officially defined paramilitary forces of India.

Source :- The Hindu, 30-Nov-2015