India has asked Nepal to be cautious about integrating Maoist combatants into the Nepal Army.

The suggestion — “it may not be wise to do anything that will adversely affect the professionalism as well as apolitical and neutral character of the Nepal Army” — apparently came when visiting Nepal Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal apprised his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh that integration and management of the Maoist combatants was the biggest challenge to successfully accomplishing the peace process and completing the Constitution writing before the May 2010 deadline. The two Prime Ministers met for a 75-minute exclusive meeting before ministers and officials from both sides joined in on Wednesday night.

“We will fully honour the Comprehensive Peace Agreement regarding Maoist combatants,” the Nepal PM told a group of journalists on Thursday. “They are to be integrated into society. We may integrate them into civil police, border security force, industrial security force, para-military group and even Nepal Army, if necessary. But let a concrete proposal come to us.”

The Nepal Prime Minister, who rounds off his five-day official visit to Delhi on Saturday, said he came here not for ‘physical support’, but for securing goodwill from India. “I am fully satisfied with the goodwill and hospitality extended to us.”

Madhav Nepal was supposed to have been keen on signing some agreements. But India is learnt to have advised him that it can be done when Nepal feels comfortable enough, indicating that fragmentation of Nepali politics, Maoists’ warning against signing any treaty and last-minute withdrawal of Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala from the PM’s entourage contributed to India’s hesitation.

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