Nepal unrest worries press

As the political turmoil continues in Nepal, newspapers are agreed that the final outcome is still impossible to predict.

Papers focus on King Gyanendra's appeal to opposition parties to form an all-party government - an appeal which opposition politicians have rejected.

An editorial in the Kantipur daily says that the King's invitation is not enough.

"He must provide a guarantee that he will not create any obstacles on the road map prepared by the political parties and not interfere with the sovereignty of the people," the paper says.

Optimism

The Samacharpatra daily is more optimistic.

"No-one can stop the seven political parties from doing anything in accordance with the Constitution," it argues.

"There appears to be plenty of room for them to implement their road map through a constitutional route."

The state-owned The Rising Nepal, which is published in English, urges the opposition to unite and act quickly.

"If the political parties fail to develop common understanding and unity to provide a solid and concrete proposal in the formation of the new government, it will be a historic blunder on their part," it warns.

King's future

Two commentators look at the prospects for the monarchy in Nepal.

Writing in Samacharpatra, Sundar Mani Dixit argues that King's Gyanendra's reign must be nearing its end.

"No matter how hard international organisations or other nations try to advise or pressure the political parties to retain a ceremonial king," he writes, "I don't see any chance that the people will allow such a compromise to take place."

In a commentary in Kantipur, Madhav Kumar Basnet believes however that the struggle between the King and popular protest is far from decided.

"If the agitation stops suddenly, half-way," he warns, "there will be no let-up in the King's autocracy."

BBC Monitoring selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.