Koirala's India visit begins tomorrow
KATHMANDU, AUG 03 - At the official invitation of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Nepali Congress President Sushil Koirala is set to visit New Delhi on Sunday. He will be accompanied by two secretary generals of the party--Prakash Man Singh and Krishna Prasad Sitaula--and his aide Laxman Dhakal.
This is Koirala's first official visit to India after his election as the party president in September 2010. "This is a political visit focussed on improving Nepal-India ties and also party-to-party relations," said Sitaula.
The visit is expected to strengthen ties between Nepali Congress and the Indian establishment and political parties, said Sitaula. Unlike three former Prime Ministers Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Sher Bahadur Deuba and Madhav Kumar Nepal, who have visited India recently, Koirala will not be conferring with any think tank in Delhi. He will travel to Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and meet the chief ministers.
The Indian side has been stating that these visits are part of the Indian government's policy to expand talks and consultations with the Nepali political parties to strengthen bilateral ties.
The NC president will meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, National Security Advisor Shiv Shanker Menon and leaders from the ruling and opposition parties. He will meet Singh on Monday and Gandhi on Tuesday.
In July 2011, Koirala made an unofficial visit to India on his way back from the United States and Europe. He had met Pranab Mukherjee (the Indian president who was then finance minister), Singh, Gandhi and other Indian leaders and officials.
After Koirala, Delhi is said to be planning to invite another former PM and CPN-UML Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal and some Tarai party leaders.
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