At a time when the government is preparing to announce the date of local elections before expediting efforts to endorse the constitution amendment bill, India has said it does not have any “prescription” regarding the domestic politics of Nepal.

Vikas Swarup, spokesperson for the External Affairs Ministry of India, made such remarks amid reports that New Delhi was pressing Nepal’s political parties to give priority to constitution amendment before going to the polls.

“We have never been prescriptive in our relations with Nepal. Our consistent position is that peace, stability and progress of Nepal are in the interest of both Nepal and India,” he said.

He added that India “hopes all sides [in Nepal] will continue to engage closely on the ongoing efforts”. He reiterated that India has been supportive of the efforts made by the Nepal government to meet the demands of all sections of society. Since the promulgation of the constitution in September 2015, India has been requesting Nepali leaders to amend the constitution in order to address the demands of the Madhes-based parties.

Narayan Kaji Shrestha, a senior leader of the ruling CPN (Maoist Centre) who was in Delhi this week, informed the Indian side that the date of the elections would be announced before the government intensifies efforts to address the demands of Madhes-based parties. The regional parties, however, have demanded that the amendments be endorsed before announcing the election date. They have warned of hitting the streets once the election date is announced.