Greater Nepal

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Greater Nepal- Map

Greater Nepal is a concept referring to the state of Nepal extending beyond present boundaries to include territories ceded to the British East India Company under the Sugauli Treaty that ended the Anglo-Nepalese War in 1814 - 16.^[1] The idea of a modern Nepali state covering the same territories motivates some Nepali nationalist groups.^[1]

Historic boundaries

Under the Sugauli treaty, Nepalese kingdom had ceded conquered territories that spanned from the Tista River in the east, which are constituted in the modern Indian states of Punjab^{[citation needed]}, Himachal Pradesh^{[citation needed]} and Uttarakhand and including places such as Almora, Pathankot, Kumaon, Dehradun, Garhwal, Sirmur and Shimla and Kangra, located to the west of the Sutlej River in the modern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Nepal also ceded control over kingdom of Sikkim, whose local ruler, the Chogyal had supported the British in the war. The re-acquisition of these territories is a goal held by several Nepali political groups.^[2]

Nationalist cause

The ideal of "Greater Nepal" motivates not only some Nepali nationalists but a majority of Nepalese academicians who seek to extend the boundaries of present-day Nepal to include the very territories ceded under the Sugauli Treaty. Some Nepali politicians and activists accuse India of usurping Nepali territory and using the present border and territorial situation to dominate Nepal, which in the opinion of Nepali nationalists can be overcome by a "Greater Nepal."^[1] Most law graduates claim that the Sugauli Treaty became null and void on August 15, 1947 when India obtained her independence from British Raj and by the 1950 Indo-Nepal Friendship Treaty.^[1] Several Nepalese publications and activities claim the lost territories must be recovered since the Sugauli Treaty has in effect been void by the article 8 fo the 1950 Indo-Nepal Friendship Treaty and Anglo-Nepal Treaty.