BackoffIndia

#BackoffIndia is a Twitter hashtag and social media campaign against alleged "intervention" by India in Nepal's internal affairs, accusing it of having caused the 2015 Nepal blockade of Nepal.[1][2] The blockade was caused by Madhesi protestors in Nepal who were dissatisfied with the newly adopted Constitution of Nepal.[3] But the Nepalese put the blame for the blocade on India.[4] Scholars state that Nepal is a hotbed of conspiracy theories that blame all of Nepal's internal troubles on its southern neighbour.[5]

#BackoffIndia
Date2015 (2015)
LocationNepal
CauseProtest against blockade in Nepal,
Protest against Indian maps showing Kalapani territory.

The hashtag was used by Nepalese around the world to accuse India of interfering in the country’s internal matters.[4] During September–December 2015, more than 6,750 tweets have been created in Twitter with this hashtag.[6]

The hashtag was used again in 2019 when the Nepalese discovered that India included 35 sq. km. Kalapani territory at the northwest frontier of Nepal within India's territory.[7] Kalapani had been included in Indian territory ever since its independence and for almost a century prior to that.[8] Once again, conspiracy theories give rise to disaffection.[9]

2015 blockade

On 20 September 2015, Nepal adopted the new Constitution of Nepal after the announcement by Rambaran Yadav , the then President of Nepal in the house of parliament. It was passed with 90% approval from the representatives in Nepal's Constituent Assembly (CA).[10][11] On 16 September 2015, out of the 598 members of the Constituent Assembly, 507 voted for the new constitution, 25 voted against, and 66 abstained in a vote. Parties representing Nepal’s Madhesi and Tharu ethnic communities organized protests against the constitution, leading to widespread violence in southern Nepal and a targeted campaign by Nepal security forces against protesting citizens based solely on their ethnicity.[12] The Nepal government has accused India of unofficially backing this protest by slowing or stopping traffic from crossing the border into Nepal completely.[13] However, India has maintained that Nepal’s failure to draft an inclusive Constitution is responsible for the unrest. It has also been pointed out by India that the “blockade” is taking place on Nepal’s side of the border, where protestors have attacked Indian drivers who were trying to transport food and facilitate trade between the two neighbors.

On 23 September 2015 demonstrators in Kathmandu shouted anti-India slogans to protest the fuel shortage.[14] Nepal Cable Television Association blocked 42 Indian channels in protest against unofficial blockade into the country.[15]

Kalapani protest

The Twitter hashtag again gained popularity when the Government of India’s Press Information Bureau released a map of India's territories in connection with the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation on 2 November 2019. The map showed Kalapani territory in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand state of India, which is disputed by Nepal, as a part of Darchula District of Sudurpashchim Province. Nepalese took to social media backing their government's claim to it using the hashtag.[7]

See also

References
  1. "Nepal constitution: Mind your own business, media tell India". BBC. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  2. "Outrage over India's 'intervention' in Nepal's affairs; #BackOffIndia trends on social media". Daily News And Analysis. dna webdesk. 22 September 2015. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  3. Nepal Blockade: A Humanitarian Crisis amidst Diplomatic Kerfuffle, South Asians for Human Rights, 2016, pp. 26–27, ISBN 978-955-1489-18-2: "Finally, on September 23, 2015 the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) decided to block all the major highways and customs points bordering India, thus effectively blocking all movement of goods and services to Nepal. Since India was the conduit for Nepal’s third-country trade, that too was affected."
  4. Parashar, Utpal (23 September 2015). "BackOffIndia! Nepal protesters slam 'interference' over statute". Hindustan Times.
  5. Chaturvedy, Rajeev Ranjan; Malone, David M. (2012), "A Yam between Two Boulders: Nepal's Foreign Policy Caught between India and China", in Sebastian von Einsiedel; David M. Malone; Suman Pradhan (eds.), Nepal in Transition: From People's War to Fragile Peace, Cambridge University Press, p. 287, ISBN 978-1-107-00567-9
  6. "#BackOffIndia". Twitter. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  7. "India's updated political map stirs controversy in Nepal". Aljazeera. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  8. Sam Cowan, The Indian checkposts, Lipu Lekh, and Kalapani, School of Oriental and African Studies, 14 December 2015.
  9. Sam Cowan, The Indian checkposts, Lipu Lekh, and Kalapani, School of Oriental and African Studies, 14 December 2015. "Received wisdom on the start of Indian occupation stems from the views of Bhuddi Narayan Shrestha, which have been endlessly repeated in just about every article written on the subject."
  10. "Nepal passes secular constitution amid protests". Aljazeera. 20 September 2015. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  11. Majumder, Sanjoy (22 September 2015). "Why India is concerned about Nepal's constitution". BBC. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  12. Phuyal, Hari (18 September 2015). "Nepal's New Constitution: 65 Years in the Making". The Diplomat. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  13. "Nepal blockade: Doctors warn of medicine crisis". BBC. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  14. "Nepal Rations Fuel as Political Crisis With India Worsens". The New York Times. 28 September 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  15. "Nepal blocks Indian TV channels over 'blockade'". BBC. 29 September 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
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