India welcomes Nepali king's move but wants more steps

"We, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and myself, had conveyed to King Gyanendra that political processes should be restored, political prisoners should be released, emergency should be lifted and Indian channels should be allowed to be aired and processes should be started which culminate in multi-party elections," External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh told reporters here while commenting on the developments in Nepal.

"This is the first step," he said.

External Affairs Ministry spokesman said India wanted to see release of all political leaders still in custody and the restoration of civil liberties which could open the way for reconciliation between the two constitutional forces.