It is Koirala's first trip abroad since he took power in April after weeks of street protests in Nepal forced King to restore parliament.
KATHMANDU: Nepal's Maoist rebels urged Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala to seek the release of about 150 comrades jailed in India, during his visit to the giant neighbour beginning on Tuesday.
It is Koirala's first trip abroad since he took power in April after weeks of street protests in the Himalayan nation forced King Gyanendra to restore parliament and end direct rule.
The rebels and the new multi-party government have since agreed to hold elections for a special assembly to prepare a new constitution that would decide the future of monarchy.
"The prime minister should take the initiative with Indian leaders to get our party leaders freed from jails," Dev Gurung, a senior Maoist leader, said.
Maoist rebels often escape into India after crossing the porous border. Many have been arrested by India.
Koirala, 84, who arrives in New Delhi on Tuesday, will hold talks with Indian government leaders including counterpart Manmohan Singh during his four-day visit.
Officials said that the Nepali leader is expected to seek further aid for one of the 10 poorest countries in the world. More than 13,000 people have died in the conflict.
Separately, Maoist chief Prachanda stepped up the pressure on the multi-party government, accusing it of trying to derail the fledgling peace process, local media reported.
"There are some ministers in the government who are the agents of America, and working according to the signals from America and India to make the talks fail and sideline us," the Nepal Samacharpatra daily quoted him as saying at a rally in east Nepal.
Prachanda said his group, which has long been fighting for communist rule in the impoverished kingdom, would wage a 'final battle' if the political parties resisted establishment of a republic.
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