Sushma Swaraj's second day in Kathmandu

PRASHANT ACHARYA, EOI, Kathmandu, 26 Jul 2014: With Nepal experiencing a fair degree of political stability at present, India’s external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, who is on a three-day tour to the Himalayan state, is making every effort to reach out to every major stakeholder in the nascent democracy.

Swaraj today called on Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav in the capital, Kathmandu. Government sources said discussions were held on various dimensions of India-Nepal relations as well as Nepal's present political situation. Underlining the urgent need to forge stronger bilateral ties, Sharada Prasad Trital, secretary at the Office of the President, noted that besides bilateral relations, political, social and economic affairs were also discussed during the high-level meeting.

“The meeting between President Yadav and India’s foreign minister Sushma Swaraj was focused on further strengthening bilateral relations,” Trital added.

Swaraj also reportedly apprised President Yadav about the third Nepal-India Joint Commission meeting and its agenda.

The visiting Indian minister also met Pashupati Shamsher Rana, chairman of the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party and held fruitful discussions with leaders of other  political parties as well throughout the day today. Later in the day, she met Subas Nembang, chairman of Nepal’s Constituent Assembly at the Singha Durbar, the erstwhile royal palace, as also UCPN (Maoist) chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) at the CA Hall in New Baneshwor.

Swaraj’s itinerary also included several meetings with leaders of various Madhes-centric political parties such as the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (Ganatantrik), Tarai Madhes Loktantrik Party, Nepal Sadhbhawana Party, Sanghiya Samajwadi Party-Nepal, Sanghiya Sadhbhawana Party, Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (Loktantrik) and Madhesi Janadhikar Forum-Nepal, among others.

With her trip to Nepal, the Indian foreign minister has prepared the stage for the forthcoming visit of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is scheduled to visit to Nepal in the first week of August. Modi has repeatedly talked about creating stronger Indo-Nepal ties and is expected to make a number of significant announcements during his three day visit to the Nepalese capital.