By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS,
Kathmandu: Four months into power, Nepal’s new coalition government is now seeking to recall the Himalayan republic’s ambassador to India, Rukma Shumsher Rana, the official media said Tuesday.
Rana, who was appointed in 2009 by a different coalition government, is facing the axe following the fall of the alliance in 2010 and the decision by his party, the Nepali Congress, to sit in opposition.
In addition, a parliamentary committee had asked the government to recall him after Indian company Dabur India’s joint venture in Nepal, Dabur Nepal, became involved in a controversy about altering manufacturing dates, and Rana’s position as managing director of the venture holding about two percent share, was highlighted.
The Gorkhapatra, Nepal’s state-run daily, Tuesday quoted new Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav as saying that the ministry had written to Rana, asking him to return from the Indian capital.
Rana did not return to Kathmandu in April when Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna visited Nepal, causing eyebrows to be raised. While some reports said he had been sidelined by the new government, some said he had chosen not to come.
Earlier this month, the ruling parties pressured Rana to resign so that they would not have to give him his marching orders. However, he ignored the call.
With Yadav, who heads ethnic party Madhesi Janadhikar Forum Nepal, appointed the new foreign minister and the Maoists dominating the ruling alliance, diplomatic ties between India and Nepal have been strained.
Soon after being sworn in, Yadav tacitly accused India of engineering a split in his party while the Maoists have been spearheading opposition to Indian investors in Nepal despite their oft-repeated statement that they want harmonious relations with New Delhi.
A special concern for India could be the Maoists seeking to have their guerrilla army reshuffled to form a new security force to patrol the border between India and Nepal.
In 2008, when the Maoists came to power after winning the election, they sought to nominate veteran party member Ram Karki as ambassador to India. However, the appointment fell through after India objected to it.
Nepal’s consul general at the consulate in Kolkata, Suresh Man Shrestha, is also set to be replaced.