Christina Rocca arrives in Kathmandu. (Reuters)

New Delhi, May 9: India and the US today exchanged views on developments in Nepal in the wake of King Gyanendra’s decision to lift emergency from the country and how best the two sides could coordinate their positions to ensure an early return of democracy there.

The exchange of views took place this morning when US assistant secretary of state Christina Rocca met Ranjit Rae and S. Jaishankar, the joint secretaries heading the Nepal and Americas divisions respectively, in the foreign ministry. Rocca later left for Kathmandu to hold talks with the king and his close aides.

The US, along with India and other countries, had welcomed the king’s decision not to extend emergency in the country further when its three-month term expired late last month. But both countries had also made it clear that Gyanendra needed to do much more to restore democracy in the country.

During her visit to South Asia some weeks ago, Rocca had decided to stay away from Nepal. The fact that she decided to travel to Kathmandu today shows Washington has felt encouraged by the king’s decision to end the emergency.

But her decision to stop over at Delhi to consult Indian officials before her trip to Kathmandu was also a clear indication that the Bush administration wanted to go by India’s advice in dealing with the situation in Nepal.

It is not clear whether the issue of resuming arms supply to Nepal came up during the meeting between Rocca and the Indian officials.

But sources in South Block pointed out that irrespective of whether India sends the consignment of military equipment to Kathmandu that has been in the pipeline for some time now, it must not discount the fact that Delhi wants a political and not a military solution to the crisis in Nepal.

Both India and the US have felt encouraged by the decision of Nepal’s major political parties to come forward and start a serious discussion on a joint programme to bring back democracy in the country.

The leadership in Delhi as well as the Americans were at a loss for some time because of the political parties’ failure to set aside their differences and put up a united front to force the king to start serious discussions to find a political solution to the problem in Nepal.

In the past few days seven major political parties in Nepal have got together to finalise a roadmap that will help the country bring back democracy.

A draft is currently doing the rounds among leaders of these parties, which include the Nepali Congress, the Communist Party of Nepal (United-Marxist-Leninist) and the Sadbhavna Party, to chalk out a political programme that will force the king to reinstate Parliament and set up a national government comprising representatives of the parties to deal with the Maoist problem in the country.