The Foreign Ministry has clarified that the Ayodhya claims made by Prime Minister (PM) KP Sharma Oli on Monday were non-political and not made with intention to hurt anyone's feelings and sentiments.
Issuing a statement a day after PM Oli's controversial claims that India has encroached on cultural facts and Ayodhya is not in India but is a village to the west of Birgunj, the ministry has stated that the remarks were not meant to debase the significance of Ayodhya and the cultural value it bears.
"As there have been several myths and references about Shri Ram and the places associated with him, the Prime Minister was simply highlighting the importance of further studies and research of the vast cultural geography the Ramayana represents to obtain facts about Shri Ram, Ramayana and the various places linked to this rich civilization," the statement reads.
The ministry has also pointed at the tradition of celebrating Bibaha Panchami where a marriage procession coming from Ayodhya, India to Janakpur takes place every year to stress in the statement. "The Prime Ministers of Nepal and India launched the Ramayana Circuit in May 2018, of which Janakpur-Ayodhya Passenger Bus Service is an important component. These facts signify the bond of time honored cultural affinity between our two countries and peoples."
Oli's claims about Ayodhya have been widely condemned by those within his ruling party and the opposition alike with CPN Vice-chairman Bam Dev Gautam urging him to self-criticize and take back his Ayodhya claims.
PM Oli accused India of encroaching on cultural facts and claimed Ayodhya is not in India but is a village to the west of Birgunj on Monday.
Addressing a program organized at the PM's official residence in Baluwatar to mark the birth anniversary of the First Poet Bhanubhakta Acharya, Oli rued that Nepal has been oppressed culturally.
"We have been oppressed a bit culturally. Facts have been encroached. We still believe that we gave Sita to Indian Prince Ram. But we gave to the prince from Ayodhya not India. Ayodhya is a village a little west to Birgunj, not the Ayodhya created now," he elaborated.
He argued how can a prince from so far come to Janakpur for marriage if the Ayodhya claimed by India were real. He claimed that science and knowledge originated and developed in Nepal and rued that it could not be continued.
