India responds quickly to Nepal king's actions; seeks coordinated line with Washington

India responds quickly to Nepal king's actions; seeks coordinated line with Washington

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 000792 

SIPDIS 

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/31/2015 

TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER MASS EAID PREF ASEC IN NP

SUBJECT: INDIA RESPONDS QUICKLY TO NEPAL KING'S ACTIONS; 

SEEKS COORDINATED LINE WITH WASHINGTON 

Classified By: Ambassador David C. Mulford, for Reasons 1.4 (B, D) 

¶1. (S) Summary: Expressing "grave concern" over the King's 

decision to dissolve the multiparty government in Nepal, and 

calling the action "a serious setback to the cause of 

democracy," New Delhi responded swiftly and with unusual 

firmness to the February 1 developments in Kathmandu.  In a 

statement issued just hours after the King wrested power from 

Prime Minister Deuba, the MEA called for the safety and 

welfare of Nepalese political leaders who are now reportedly 

under house arrest, and stated that the King had violated the 

principles of multiparty democracy and constitutional 

monarchy as enshrined in Nepal's Constitution.  In a February 

1 phone call to the Ambassador, Foreign Secretary Saran urged 

that Washington reinforce the GOI line with its own strong 

statement.  Saran warned that if there is large scale 

agitation in Kathmandu, and if the RNA overreacts, India may 

have to "take some unpopular decisions."  In that 

eventuality, Saran added, he hopes Washington and New Delhi 

will be on the same page.  End Summary. 

Joint Message 

------------- 

¶2. (C) In a sign of growing GOI commitment to the US-India 

security partnership, Foreign Secretary Saran called the 

Ambassador on the afternoon of February 1, just a few minutes 

after New Delhi had issued its statement on the situation in 

Nepal (full text para 6).  Saran described the MEA release as 

"unusually strong" and urged the Ambassador to work with 

Washington to generate a reinforcing message from Washington. 

 Invoking the RNA's record of poor human rights practices, 

Saran expressed concern about the likelihood of large scale 

agitation in Kathmandu.  If the RNA overreacts, India may 

have to "take some unpopular decisions" (no further 

information) and, Saran added, hopes Washington and New Delhi 

will be on the same page. 

¶3. (C) Speaking to Polcouns earlier on February 1, a Director 

in the Prime Minister's office indicated that New Delhi had 

warning that the King would act late on January 31. 

Underlining India's concern with the unfolding situation, 

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his foreign affairs team 

reportedly met early on February 1 to review the situation 

and craft a response.  MEA Director (Nepal and Bhutan) Achal 

Kumar Malhotra told Poloff that, given India's keen interest 

in the long-term stability of Nepal, the MEA would issue 

further statements if necessary and would continue to closely 

monitor the situation. 

¶4. (C) MEA Under Secretary (Nepal) Manu Mahawar emphasized 

that the GOI had not yet decided whether to suspend aid to 

Nepal, a decision that would come only after India had 

reviewed the situation in greater detail.  He noted that 

communication with the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu had been 

spotty since local land and cell phone service was 

unavailable following Gyanendra's announcement, a situation 

that contributed to the uncertainly surrounding the 

situation.  Predictably, the Indians have already started 

asking whether the developments in Nepal will trigger Section 

508 sanctions from the US. 

Comment 

------- 

¶5. (C) The Indian government has repeatedly expressed an 

interest in continuing to coordinate with the US as the 

situation unfolds in Kathmandu.  Saran's call to the 

Ambassador suggests that New Delhi is gravely concerned about 

the situation in Nepal, and is likely to ramp up their 

signals of displeasure with the King's actions in both public 

and private.  Whether the GOI will suspend military aid 

remains to be seen.  As one of our contacts noted, 

Gyanendra's decision to sack the Deuba government was "a 

direct snub to New Delhi," especially in light of India's 

repeated requests that the King avoid such a course.  The 

same contact also speculated that Kathmandu's closure of the 

Dalai Lama's office in Nepal was intended as a sop to 

Beijing, aimed at lining up support from Beijing in the event 

that New Delhi took a hard line on the King's action. 

¶6. (U) Text of the MEA statement follows: 

Statement on Developments in Nepal 

The King of Nepal has dissolved the multiparty government led 

by Prime Minister 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. 

There are also reports that several political leaders have 

been confined to their residences. The safety and welfare of 

the political leaders must be ensured and political parties 

must be allowed to exercise all the rights enjoyed by them 

under the Constitution. 

India has consistently supported multiparty democracy and 

constitutional monarchy enshrined in Nepal's Constitution as 

the two pillars of political stability in Nepal. This 

principle has now been violated with the King forming a 

government under his Chairmanship. 

We have always considered that in Nepal, it is imperative to 

evolve a broad national consensus, particularly between the 

monarchy and political parties, to deal with the political 

and economic challenges facing the country. 

The latest developments in Nepal bring the monarchy and the 

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. 

India has a longstanding and unique relationship with Nepal, 

with which it shares an open border, a history of strong 

cultural and spiritual values and wide-ranging economic and 

commercial links. 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. 

New Delhi 

February 1, 2005 

Ministry of External Affairs 

 (From Wikileaks, released on Aug 30, 2011)