The proposed visit of Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri to Kathmandu next week has been deferred for now. However, India has extended an invite to the Nepalese leadership to visit New Delhi next month for the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) summit.
New Delhi is hosting the IBCA summit on June 1, and leaders of all member states, including Nepal, have been invited. It is likely that Nepalese Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal would make a visit to India although there has been no confirmation yet. The IBCA was launched on April 9, 2023, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the commemoration of 50 years of Project Tiger to create an international platform for the conservation of seven big cats — tiger, lion, leopard, cheetah, snow leopard, puma and jaguar.
Misri’s proposed two-day visit, at the invitation of his Nepal counterpart Amrit Bahadur Rai, was meant to understand the priorities of the new Balen Shah government. It was also a follow-up of the meeting between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Khanal in April, on the sidelines of the 9th Indian Ocean Conference in Mauritius. During their meeting, Jaishankar and Khanal had discussed ongoing projects and programmes, and explored high-level diplomatic visits in the near future. During his proposed visit to the neighbouring country, Misri was likely to call on Nepal PM Shah and hand over an invitation to him to visit India. As per sources, Shah has conveyed to his inner circle that he will not undertake any foreign visits in the near future.
Shah has been reluctant to meet visiting foreign officials or leaders below the rank of foreign minister, as per reports. Last week, as United special envoy for South and Central Asia Sergio Gor visited Nepal, he met with Khanal and Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle. Earlier, Shah is said to have refused to meet US Assistant Secretary of State S Paul Kapur.
It was expected that Shah would have maintained the same policy during Misri’s visit. Traditionally, visiting Indian officials have called upon successive Nepal prime ministers. Earlier, the Foreign Secretary had met with then-Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in August 2025 to discuss bilateral ties.
The recent statement by the Shah government on Lipulekh, objecting to India and China planning to conduct the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through the pass, has also cast a shadow. India had said that such claims are “neither justified nor based on historical facts and evidence”, adding it remains open to “constructive interaction with Nepal”.
Meanwhile, the two sides continue to engage on a range of other issues, including water resources, power transmission and developmental projects. Three bilateral meetings have been held between the two sides in the last two weeks. These include the Kosi and Gandak projects Joint committee, the committee on water resources, flood forecasting, and that on power transmission.
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New Delhi is looking to recalibrate its ties with the Himalayan neighbour, with the stable and full-majority government coming in, in the wake of strain with the previous Oli-led government in the preceding years. Soon after Shah’s swearing in on March 27, PM Modi had congratulated him through a post on X, expressing his desire to work closely with Shah to strengthen India-Nepal friendship and deepen cooperation for mutual benefit.
