King Gyanendra promises peace roadmap in Nepal

Just like their last meeting in Jakarta, Nepal King Gyanendra was not short on assurances when he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the m...

Just like their last meeting in Jakarta, Nepal King Gyanendra was not short on assurances when he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the margins of the SAARC summit today. Acknowledging the role of political parties, he promised that he had a roadmap in mind for establishing a multi-party democracy in Nepal.

The Prime Minister said before his departure that the Nepal King had assured him that he had a ‘‘carefully worked out roadmap’’ to take the country towards a multi-party democracy.

‘‘His Majesty recognised that political parties were the core of a flourishing democracy,’’ Singh said.

In an hour-long meeting, of which 40 minutes were one-on-one, the Prime Minister is believed to have conveyed to the King the need for moving early on his promises made in Jakarta. India has been of the view that the King’s promise for general elections in April 2007 was too stretched and that the timeframe must be shortened.

The matter was discussed at the meeting, with the King assuring the PM that he would work on restoring multi-party democracy at the earliest.

Singh also underlined the importance of involving political parties in the process, which Gyanendra acknowledged.

On the Iran issue, the Prime Minister said he could not predict which way India will vote or whether there would be a need for a vote at the IAEA meet in Vienna at this point. This, he said, would depend on the issues on the table.

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The Prime Minister also confirmed that he had cancelled his visit to Malta for the CHOGM given the pressing issues in Parliament around the same time.