Nepal asks India to hunt rebels

The king (left) wound up his visit on Friday

Nepal has urged India to track down Maoist rebel leaders believed to be sheltering on its soil.

We do not believe in the revolutionary ideals of the Maoists in Nepal

Atal Behari Vajpayee,
Indian PM

Officials travelling with King Gyanendra on his visit to India handed West Bengal's authorities a list of 35 senior Maoists who they say could be hiding in the state's northern Darjeeling district.

The officials told the BBC that rebel chief Comrade Prachanda was included in the list, but gave no further details.

During his visit, King Gyanendra met senior Indian leaders who offered further training for Nepalese army officers in their long-running campaign against the Maoist rebels.

He ended his trip on Friday in West Bengal's capital, Calcutta, with prayers at Kalighat temple which included a goat being sacrificed.

A similar animal sacrifice during the king's visit to Assam on Thursday sparked bitter criticism from animal rights activists.

Meanwhile, Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has repeated his promise to help Nepal fight the guerrillas.

"We do not believe in the revolutionary ideals of the Maoists in Nepal," he told reporters in the northern city of Lucknow on Friday.

"We will not allow terrorism to spread in any country."

Landmark trip

The king's visit to India was his first official foreign trip since ascending the throne a year ago.

It comes at the end of official mourning for his brother, Birendra, who was massacred along with most of the royal family by Crown Prince Dipendra in June 2001.

Nepal's Maoist insurgency is thought to have cost more than 4,000 lives over the past six years.

Last year the authorities declared a state of emergency and mobilised the army to put down the rebellion, leading to huge losses on both sides.

India shares a 1,750-kilometre (1,090-mile) open border with Nepal and the Nepalese authorities say Maoist leaders frequently slip across.

They say many of the leaders take refuge in India and coordinate their activities from there, making it difficult for Nepal to crack down on their operations.