‘Encroached territory’: Why India-Nepal border dispute is heating up again

Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah has reignited a border dispute with India after claiming in parliament that Nepal has also encroached on Indian territory – a departure from Nepal’s usual stance, which has largely focused on accusing its bigger neighbour of occupying its land.

India responded on Tuesday, saying it has bilateral mechanisms in place with Nepal to resolve issues of disputed territory.

The long-running dispute between Nepal and India over border territories including Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani has periodically bubbled up over the years. The conflict is a mix of contested history, geography, politics and mapping.

Here is what Shah said, what the border dispute is about, and what this means.

“You will be surprised to know a fact that I have learned recently, only after becoming prime minister: Not only has India encroached Nepali territory, but Nepal has also encroached Indian territory in many places,” Shah said during his address to parliament.

He did not elaborate on which parts of India he believed Nepal had encroached on.

“Now, both countries should study the facts and sit together as friends and resolve the issue,” the Nepali leader added.

Shah was sworn in as the PM of Nepal on March 27 this year. He was previously the mayor of Kathmandu, winning the seat in 2022 as an independent candidate. He was a controversial figure, launching a crackdown on street vendors that drew criticism from civil society leaders. Before this, he was a musician who used his work to highlight corruption and inequality.

Shah joined the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) in December 2025, shortly after youth protests deposed the previous government, leading to the resignation of Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli in September 2025.

The party, barely four years old, was founded by former journalist Rabi Lamichhane, who is currently a lawmaker in the Nepali parliament. Lamichhane arrived in the Indian capital of New Delhi on Monday for a five-day visit that will include high-level political and diplomatic talks with Indian PM Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Shah added that Nepali lawmakers have reached out to China and the United Kingdom regarding the territorial dispute, the latter due to its colonial legacy in the Indian subcontinent.

In using British help, Shah “is not seeking the UK’s mediation on this issue – rather assistance with regards to various original survey maps as early as 1827 and 1834, which would strengthen our position when negotiating with India”, Nishchal Pandey, the director of the Kathmandu-based Centre