Koirala favours ceremonial role for King

Kathmandu, June 15 (UNI) Nepal's Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala said that the King, who was divested of all his powers by the Parliament, should be given a ceremonial role.

''All forces should be given some space, so I am in favour of a ceremonial role for the King,'' the octogenarian leader said, speaking at a programme in his home town Biratnagar yesterday.

Mr Koirala said that the agenda of the Nepali Congress was to give the King a ceremonial role and bring the Maoists and the seven parties into the democratic mainstream.

Refering to the monarchy, he cautioned that if they did not ''provide some room to any force, that could lead us to an unpleasant path due to frustration,'' adding that they had been saying that the King should be made a ceremonial monarch.

''Anything could be done once the transition period was over,'' Mr Koirala said.

The Prime Minister, however, noted that arms management was an issue of concern with the Maoists.

''The government had talked to the United Nations regarding providing food to the Maoist rebels,'' Mr Koirala said, adding the global body would ''assist but the Maoists, too, should provide information about the number, position and state of their army.'' He expressed confidence about the success of the talks with the Maoists.

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