New Delhi: Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah on Sunday said that Nepal had encroached on Indian territories like the latter had done on Nepali territories, and called for UK’s involvement in the mediation process.According to a report in the Kathmandu Post, Shah made the statement while answering a question from Aaren Rai of Shram Sanskriti Party in parliament.“After becoming prime minister, I came to know that not only has India encroached on Nepal’s land, but Nepal has also encroached on India’s land in multiple places. Both sides need to sit down and look into the matter,” Shah said.While answering a separate question from Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) deputy parliamentary party leader Padma Aryal, on the dispute over Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura, Shah said that the matter will be resolved through diplomatic dialogue.Shah said that Nepal had also reached out to China and the UK over the border dispute. “We have spoken not only with India and China but also with the UK government. Our view is that the UK should also take an interest, as the issue dates back to the period when British India left the region,” Shah said.According to the report, Nepal has already sent an official diplomatic note to India. Regarding India’s response to the note, Shah said, “The response states that both governments will form teams comprising historians, surveyors and experts familiar with the territory and seek a resolution through table talks.”BackgroundEarlier this month, India had rejected Nepal’s claims on Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani. On May 3, the foreign ministry of Nepal had issued a statement saying that “Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani, situated east of the Mahakali River, have been integral parts of Nepal’s territory since the Sugauli Treaty of 1816.”Nepal said it had conveyed its concerns to both India and China through diplomatic channels and had “continuously urged” India not to carry out “any activities such as road construction or expansion, border trade and pilgrimage” in the area. It also said it had officially informed China that the Lipulekh area is Nepali territory.Within a couple of hours, India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal responded that India’s position “has been consistent and clear” and that the Lipulekh Pass “has been a long standing route for the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra since 1954.”The Nepali statement had come in response to India’s announcement on May 1 that the 2026 Kailash Mansarovar Yatra would run from June to August, with 10 batches of 50 pilgrims each travelling through the Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand and another 10 batches through the Nathu La Pass in Sikkim. The Chinese Embassy in New Delhi welcomed the resumption of the pilgrimage, saying China would facilitate 1,000 Indian pilgrims this year.