Tuesday, February 1 2005 15:55 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Voicing grave concern over the political developments in Nepal, India today (Feb 1, 2005) said it has brought the monarchy and mainstream political parties in direct confrontation with each other and warned that it would only benefit forces that wish to undermine democracy.

"We will continue to support the restoration of political stability and economic prosperity in Nepal, a process which requires reliance on the forces of democracy and the support of the people of Nepal," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement in New Delhi.

In an hour-long meeting, External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh briefed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the political crisis in Nepal. Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran spoke to India's Ambassador in Kathmandu S S Mukherjee to get an update on the developments.

"The King of Nepal has dissolved the multi-party Government led by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and has decided to constitute a Council of Ministers under his own Chairmanship. An emergency has been declared and fundamental rights have been suspended.

"These developments constitute a serious setback to the cause of democracy in Nepal and cannot but be a cause of grave concern to India," the MEA statement said.

It said the latest developments "bring the monarchy and mainstream political parties in direct confrontation with each other. This can only benefit the forces that not only wish to undermine democracy but the institution of monarchy as well".