KATHMANDU, Aug 18: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is confirmed to visit India in the second week of September (last week of Bhadra). The visit was finalized after Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri extended an official invitation. According to information released by the PM’s Secretariat on Sunday evening, Misri handed over the invitation for a visit.
This will be PM Oli’s first visit to India after one year and two months in office. Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, and Ministry of Physical Infrastructure have all been preparing for the visit. These ministries are carrying out the necessary groundwork to ensure the success of the visit. India has reportedly given special importance to meetings with the Nepalese PM this time.
Bihar’s Bodh Gaya has been selected as the venue for bilateral talks with Indian PM Narendra Modi. Although diplomatic discussions have taken place regarding the meeting program in Bodh Gaya, the official schedule has not yet been made public.
By choosing Bodh Gaya instead of the traditional Hyderabad House in New Delhi for the meeting, Modi has broken the convention of hosting the Nepalese PM in Delhi. The formal visit by Oli, 14 months into his premiership, is seen as significant rather than coincidental. Bodh Gaya, located in Bihar, is a sacred pilgrimage site for followers of Buddhism.
In the past, formal visits by Nepalese PMs included meetings and joint addresses with their Indian counterparts at Hyderabad House, Delhi. Only after formal talks were visiting PMs taken outside Delhi. For example, former PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal was taken to the Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, after official programs in Delhi. Similarly, former PM Sher Bahadur Deuba visited the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi after Delhi meetings.
Modi has also held meetings outside Delhi with heads of state from other countries. In 2014, Chinese President Xi Jinping met Modi in Ahmedabad. In 2019, bilateral talks took place in Tamil Nadu between Xi Jinping and Modi. In 2020, US President Donald Trump visited Gujarat during his India trip. Two years ago, French President Emmanuel Macron was welcomed by Modi in Jaipur during his visit to India.
PM Deuba visits Bodh Gaya and flying back to Nepal
According to Indian sources, sending the Foreign Secretary to invite PM Oli and choosing a venue outside Delhi for bilateral talks reflects India’s special emphasis on the meeting. At Bodh Gaya, the two leaders will have time for both formal and informal discussions. The location is also intended to strengthen political as well as cultural ties.
The proposal to hold the Oli-Modi meeting at Bodh Gaya, a religious site outside Delhi, was sent through diplomatic channels, signaling India’s emphasis on this visit. In Nepal, there have been differing views on Buddha’s birthplace and the site of enlightenment. Similarly, a few years ago, PM Oli had remarked that Ram was born near Thori in Nepal’s Ayodhyapuri.
PM Modi visited Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha, on the occasion of the 2566th Buddha Purnima. He addressed a large gathering of Buddhist scholars and monks there. On this auspicious occasion, the birth, enlightenment, and Mahasamadhi of Gautam Buddha are commemorated.
This was Modi’s fifth visit to Nepal as PM, which helped strengthen shared culture and deepen the bond between the people of both countries. During his address, Modi said, “I feel honored to come to Lumbini to pay respect at the birthplace of Buddha.”
Modi’s visit significantly contributed to promoting pilgrimage tourism in Nepal. During that visit, former PM Sher Bahadur Deuba laid the foundation for the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture and Heritage, aimed at attracting scholars, tourists, and Buddhist pilgrims worldwide.
The project is valued at one billion rupees and will include a prayer hall, meditation center, library, exhibition hall, and other facilities. Key Buddhist sites include Lumbini, Kapilvastu, Bodh Gaya, Rajgir, Kosambi, Shravasti, Sarnath, Vaishali, and Kushinagar. These locations are central destinations for tourists and pilgrims and now form an integral part of the Buddhist circuit.
Importantly, India collaborated with Nepal to develop an international Buddhist tourist circuit that traces the footsteps of Buddha, starting from Lumbini (Nepal) and concluding at Kushinagar (India).
This area could also serve as a focal point for tourism and cultural development, allowing pilgrims and other visitors to experience the essence of Buddhism’s spiritual aspects. About 97 percent of the world’s Buddhist population resides in Asia. Countries such as Bhutan, Cambodia, Japan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand consider Buddhism a core national value and an integral part of their identity.
India and Nepal are jointly working on the construction of the Lumbini Museum. During Modi’s recent visit to Lumbini, several important agreements were signed, including a proposed joint degree program between Madras IIT and Kathmandu University, and the Dr. Ambedkar Chair of Buddhist Studies between the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and Lumbini Buddhist University. An MoU was also signed for establishing the ICCR Chair of Indian Studies at Tribhuvan University and another MoU between ICCR and Kathmandu University. Additionally, countries like the US, China, Canada, France, Germany, and Thailand have set up centers in Lumbini to promote Buddhist studies.
During the visit, Modi emphasized the importance of the Buddhist circuit, stating that the India-Nepal joint initiative will ensure Lumbini is properly promoted within the Buddhist circuit by Indian tour operators. Modi highlighted Lumbini as the birthplace of Buddha, responding to occasional claims by the Indian government questioning Nepal’s assertion. The upcoming Oli-Modi meeting in Bodh Gaya is expected to help dispel such negative perceptions.
Buddha’s birthplace, Lumbini, lies close to the Indian border, with Chinese influence stretching from the airport built with China’s economic assistance to Chinese monasteries in the area. In this context, India also seeks to emphasize its deep historical and cultural connection with Buddha and his birthplace.
Notably, China has proposed connecting Lumbini with the Tibetan town of Kerung via road and rail, effectively linking it to the BRI network. China’s Buddhist soft-power initiatives, including the 2018 World Buddhist Forum held every three years, aim to strengthen relations with Buddhist countries involved in BRI discussions.
Strengthening relations with Nepal based on Buddhism could help India fulfill the strategic objectives of its ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy. Modi’s Buddhist diplomacy is expected to challenge China’s sponsorship and influence over Buddhist festivals and institutions in the region, bolstering India’s soft-power image.
India Foreign Secretary Misri’s diplomatic visit
On Sunday morning, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who came to invite PM Oli for the visit, held political meetings on the first day. He met with President Ramchandra Paudel, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, ruling party Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, opposition leader CPN (Maoist Center) Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and Minister for Foreign Affairs Arju Deuba Rana.
After meeting PM Oli at Singha Durbar, Misri went to Shital Niwas to meet President Paudel. He then visited Deuba’s residence in Budhanilkantha to meet NC President Deuba, and later Khumaltar to meet Maoist Chair Dahal. High-level discussions focused on Nepal-India bilateral interests.
