The high-profile honour given to Rastriya Swatantra Party chair Rabi Lamichhane in New Delhi has taken many in Nepal by surprise.

Lamichhane’s five-day visit to the southern neighbour concludes on Friday. His delegation reached Ayodhya on Thursday evening, the birthplace of Lord Ram.

After the installation of a powerful government in Kathmandu in March, New Delhi welcomed Lamichhane and accorded him the honour befitting a visiting prime minister.

The rousing welcome that Lamichhane received has triggered speculations over the internal dynamics in the ruling RSP, and the party chair’s relationship with Prime Minister Balendra Shah. In a month’s time, the RSP is holding its general convention, to decide its leadership.

Weeks ago, Prime Minister Shah refused to meet Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who was due to visit Kathmandu, citing a concern over protocol. Early this week, Shah spoke in Parliament about Nepal’s boundary dispute with India, which became controversial both at home and in India.

In this context, Lamichhane travelled to Delhi, to a rare welcome accorded to a Nepali leader.

On Tuesday, as he entered the premises of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s headquarters at Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, he was welcomed by a floral shower. Lamichhane was received by BJP National President Nitin Nabin and other senior BJP stalwarts. Then they took Lamichhane, his wife Nekita Poudel Lamichhane and RSP lawmakers Bipin Acharya and Deepak Bohora on a tour of the party headquarters.

Whenever there is a major political change in Kathmandu, it is New Delhi’s usual approach to engage with new Nepali leadership, a Nepali diplomat who has previously served at the Nepali Embassy in Delhi told the Post. “Be it the Maoists after the Constituent Assembly elections or later in 2018 when the Nepal Communist Party emerged as the most powerful party from a merger of the CPN-UML and the CPN (Maoist Centre), India was quick to engage with them.”

In 2018, after a decisive election victory of the two communist parties, then-external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj travelled to Kathmandu in order to engage with the incoming KP Sharma Oli-led government.

On Lamichhane’s current visit, an Indian journalist covering the episode in Delhi told the Post that it’s a rare moment that the BJP offered such a rousing welcome to a foreign leader at its headquarters. Alongside, the government’s engagement with Lamichhane was also a rare event, the journalist remarked.

“He is only a ruling party president, not the prime minister of Nepal. But breaking all types of stereotypes and protocols, the way the government also accorded him high respect, that is something rare and very surprising,” the journalist said. “This shows the BJP and the Indian government want to work closely with the new powerful government in Nepal and chart a new course in bilateral ties.”

In New Delhi, the two sides discussed the promotion of ties between the RSP and the BJP and decided to open more avenues of cooperation between the two parties.

On Tuesday evening, Vijay Chauthaiwale, who is in charge of the BJP Department of Foreign Affairs, hosted a dinner for Lamichhane and the visiting RSP delegation, inviting influential BJP leaders and some former diplomats.

Other notable meetings of Lamichhane were with Home Minister Amit Shah and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. Shah is not known to meet many foreign leaders.

Suhasini Haidar, diplomatic editor for The Hindu, wrote on X: “Quite an exception for Home Minister (Shah) to meet foreign leader (Lamichhane).”

On Wednesday, Lamichhane and the RSP delegation, along with the Chargé d’affaires at the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi Surendra Thapa, held talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for over an hour. The meeting discussed ways to chart out a new course in Nepal-India relations, development diplomacy being floated by the RSP, India’s partnership and support for Nepal’s priorities, and high-level visits and exchanges in the future. Lamichhane also extended an invitation for Modi to visit Nepal. Modi has reportedly responded that he will visit Nepal at an appropriate time.

Ahead of the meeting, Haidar wrote on X: “PM is expected to meet (Lamichhane) today and added that interestingly, after Nepal PM Balendra Shah’s tough talking, refusal to meet Foreign Secretary Misri, Delhi has laid out the red carpet for his party chief.”

Recent developments between Kathmandu and New Delhi suggest that bilateral relations are entering a period of uncertainty. These developments involve the absence of a meeting between Prime Minister Shah and Indian Ambassador Naveen Srivastava, as well as Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri’s deferral of visit over protocol-related issues.

The resurgence of the Nepal-India boundary dispute has further complicated relations, particularly following Prime Minister Shah’s recent remarks that Nepal has also encroached on Indian territory in many places. At the same time, the government has approached the British Embassy to seek British India-era documents, maps, and other evidence that could support Nepal’s position on boundaries during bilateral negotiations with India.

Such materials are expected to be used in discussions aimed at resolving the longstanding disputes over Kalapani, Limpiyadhura, and Lipulekh, which Kathmandu asserts as parts of the Nepali territory. Many viewed these developments as Nepal-India relations heading towards a state of confusion and uncertainty.

The welcome accorded to Lamichhane by the BJP and the Indian government is a rare treatment received by a Nepali leader in New Delhi. He had meetings with top Indian officials like Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Jaishankar, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and BJP National President Nitin Nabin. The sitting arrangements at Modi’s residence looked like an official government delegation meeting.

Modi was accompanied by Jaishankar, Doval, Foreign Secretary Misri and other officials. On the Nepali side, besides Lamichhane, his wife Nekita and two RSP lawmakers Acharya and Bohora, and Thapa were also in attendance.

Lamichhane and Modi discussed the priorities of Kathmandu, with Modi clearly saying that India is ready to support Nepal.

Deep Kumar Upadhyay, former Nepali ambassador to New Delhi, however, tried to downplay Lamichhane’s reception in the Indian capital. “Lamichhane’s welcome was not very rare as many other Nepali leaders have had the opportunity to meet Modi.”

He recalled that during her term as foreign minister, Arzu Rana Deuba had secured a meeting with Modi.

The Shah government has been criticised for not owning up Lamichhane’s visit. Speaking to journalists, government spokesperson Sasmit Pokharel had termed Lamichanne’s visit as “a purely personal trip”.

“The government made a mistake by not taking ownership of Lamichhane’s visit,” Upadhyay said. “Lamichhane should also have been sent as the government’s special representative so that his understanding with the Indian leadership materialises.”

If the Nepal government does not take ownership of Lamichhane’s meeting, the understanding he reached with New Delhi would be meaningless, Upadhyay reasoned.

He suggested that a minister should have accompanied Lamichhane to Delhi. “Rabi should have taken one minister with him to formalise his visit,” Upadhyay said. “And Rabi should be careful while dealing with the Indians.”

He stressed that New Delhi manoeuvring in Nepal’s internal politics is not a new phenomenon.

Indian observers who follow Nepali politics say the welcome for Lamichhane was largely a message to Prime Minister Shah that India has multiple avenues for engaging with Nepal.

Signs are apparent that the Indian government is not going to stop engaging with the new RSP government in Kathmandu. Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal is heading to New Delhi on Friday on an official visit at the invitation of his counterpart, S Jaishankar.

The two sides are expected to reach some agreements and understandings during Khanal’s visit, for which negotiations continue.

Diplomatic sources in Kathmandu and New Delhi told the Post that Delhi is also keen to host another high-profile visit of Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle to New Delhi within the month of June.

Not only the RSP as a party, New Delhi also wants to engage with the Shah government despite his self-imposed restriction of not meeting foreign ambassadors in Kathmandu.

Nihar Nayak, a long-time Nepal watcher in New Delhi, said that one reason for Lamichhane’s jubilant welcome is that both RSP and BJP presidents are young and thus have a natural chemistry.

Lamichhane is 51 years old while BJP President Nabin is 46.

“As the RSP has stated that it comes without any political baggage, it helped to open new vistas of cooperation,” Nayak said. “And it is also a message to Prime Minister Balendra Shah. It is also a message to the Nepali Gen-Z that India is with them since the RSP emerged as a popular party.”

Addressing the Nepali diaspora in New Delhi on Thursday evening, Lamichhane urged people not to be swayed by rumours and assured them that he would ensure the country finds its way forward.

“Many people have come to New Delhi to open political doors, but this time I have come to open the door to prosperity,” the RSP chair said. “We have dreamt of a prosperous Nepal for generations, and I have come with an agenda of cooperation to help realise that dream. My concerns and priorities are focused solely on the progress and prosperity of Nepal and the Nepali people. That is the only reason I have come to Delhi.”

He said that his visit was not driven by any personal interest, that he had come to India with the objective of activating various diplomatic channels and drawing up a roadmap for prosperity. The RSP-led government was still in its early days and had a great deal of work ahead, Lamichhane added.

“Over the past 10-12 years, India has made remarkable strides in development and prosperity, while we next door have largely remained spectators,” he said. “Now we will move forward together, traveling the path of prosperity side by side—resolving smaller issues through consultation, dialogue and mutual understanding.”