Indian External Affairs Minister Khurshild wraps up Nepal Visit; India pledges full support for CA

KATHMANDU: Indian Minister for External Affairs Salman Khurshid has wrapped up his one day long visit to Nepal and returned back to New Delhi on Tuesday evening.

During his nine-hour long stay in Nepal Khurshid met Chairperson of Interim Council of Ministers Khil Raj Regmi, Minister of Foreign Affairs Madhav Prasad Ghimire, top leaders of UCPN-Maoist, Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and other Madhesh-based parties at Hotel Dwarika’s in Kathmandu.

During his visit a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed to provide 764 vehicles for the upcoming Constituent Assembly (CA) election. Finance Secretary Shantaraj Subedi and Indian envoy Jayanta Prasad had signed the MoU.

Khurshid also paid a courtesy call to President Ram Baran Yadav at the latter’s residence in Sheetal Niwas, Mahargunj in the afternoon.

Speaking at a press briefing organized on Tuesday before wrapping up a day-long visit to Nepal, Khurshid reiterated the commitments of Indian government to provide full support for holding CA elections on the scheduled date. He said he was in Kathmandu to express India´s solidarity for holding CA elections as per aspirations of the Nepalese people.

However he has asked Nepal´s major political parties and the government to make maximum efforts to bring poll-opposing parties on board the electoral process. He asked the top leaders of the major parties to go to election even if the agitating parties do not come on board the election process.