Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli returned home on Wednesday night after completing his six-day visit to India. 

Though PM Oli has maintained that his visit was “highly successful” in clearing the misunderstandings that had surfaced after the promulgation of the constitution, no joint communiqué was issued at the end of the visit, in a major departure from the tradition.

According to highly placed sources on both sides, India’s reservations (about some constitutional provisions) continue to persist, as a result, the visit ended without issuing a joint communiqué. 

A joint communiqué has been the tradition at least since 1990 when Nepali heads of state or government visit India. 

Nepal’s Ambassador to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay confirmed that there was no joint communiqué after PM Oli ended his state visit to India, largely due to lack of interest from the Indian side.

Officials privy to the visit told the Post that despite initial preparations in New Delhi to issue a joint communiqué and senior officials from both sides working hard to finalise the content and wordings, India’s refusal to categorically “welcome” Nepal’s new constitution became the sticking point.