KATHMANDU, April 24: Nepal’s King Gyanendra, buckling after 19 days of violent protests on the streets of the capital, agreed in a televised address on Monday to reinstate the parliament that was dissolved in 2002.

“We declare the reinstatement of the House of Representatives,” he said a day before the opposition parties were to stage a huge rally in Kathmandu demanding a return to multi-party democracy.

King Gyanendra took absolute power after sacking the government in February last year, saying it was corrupt and had failed to tackle a bloody Maoist insurgency. The move was greeted with jubilation by a seven-party opposition Alliance, which said Tuesday’s planned protest would turn into a victory rally.

People spilled on to the streets as soon as the king had completed his address.—AFP