Nepal-India talk repatriation of exiled Bhutanese

New Delhi, June 05: Nepalese leader Madhav Kumar Nepal and his party leaders asked Indian Prime Minister Dr Man Mohan Singh to allow the exiled Bhutanese to return to their country through India.

During a discussion with Singh in New Delhi on Tuesday, Nepal said India's involvement was critical in solving the crisis. Nepal said the first priority for the exiled Bhutanese must be repatriation and the third country settlement would be taken an alternative only.

"We have told the Indian PM that Bhutan should take back its citizens from Nepal and that India should play a cooperative role in this regard. The Indian PM said India is also concerned about the issue", Nepal said.

Singh is learnt to have repeated his earlier answer to Nepalese Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala during the sideline meeting of the 14th SAARC summit that India would review its stand on the issue.

"We want this problem to be solved at the earliest since it is a humanitarian problem," Singh said.

Few days ago, India blocked the way for voluntary repatriation of the exiled Bhutanese at Mechi Bridge. Bhutan News Service