Guwahati: Nepal has been unable to confirm the whereabouts of the original 1816 Sugauli Treaty, a historic agreement that established the basis of the country’s boundary with British India.
Nepal’s Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal told the House of Representatives that although documents related to the treaty are held in the country’s National Archives, there is no clear information on whether they are the original official copies.
Khanal said Nepal has records relating to both the Sugauli Treaty and the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship with India. However, the government has not been able to establish whether the documents in its possession are the original agreements.
The issue has gained renewed attention amid tensions over the India-Nepal border, particularly following the decision by India and China to reopen the Lipulekh trade route. Nepal has maintained territorial claims over Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura and Kalapani, while India rejects those claims.
Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah has recently raised the border issue with India, including alleged encroachment in the Lipulekh area. Shah said the two countries had agreed to examine the matter through historians, surveyors, and territorial experts and to resolve outstanding issues through diplomatic discussions.
India, however, has rejected Nepal’s territorial claims and maintained that there is no role for a third party in resolving bilateral border issues. New Delhi has also said Nepal’s claims over Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura are not supported by historical facts or evidence.
The absence of the original treaty documents is not a new development. Nepal had reportedly been unable to locate the original Sugauli Treaty during discussions in 2016 on reviewing the 1950 India-Nepal treaty. The government subsequently supplied another copy to a committee examining bilateral relations.
The Delegated Legislation and Governance Committee of Nepal said on July 22 that searches of archives, libraries, government offices, and other repositories had failed to locate the original copies of both the Sugauli Treaty and the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship.
The matter had also been raised in Nepal’s Parliament in 2019. Then foreign minister Pradeep Gyawali said the government possessed copies of both treaties but could not confirm whether they were originals, adding that officials were trying to locate historical records and maps in India and the United Kingdom.
The Sugauli Treaty was signed between Nepal and the British East India Company in December 1815 and ratified in March 1816 following the Anglo-Nepalese War. The agreement formed the basis of Nepal’s territorial boundary with British India and required Nepal to cede several territories to the East India Company.
The development comes as Nepal reviews its international agreements. Khanal said the country has 655 treaties and agreements, including 412 bilateral and 243 multilateral agreements, with the government planning to examine the remaining agreements based on their relevance and necessity.