Bollywood star Manisha Koirala is in Nepal to campaign for the municipal polls Feb 8 even though her granduncle and former prime minister G.P. Koirala is at the forefront of opposition protests against the elections.

The Nepali beauty, who has carved a niche for herself in India's film industry, plans to stay till the Feb 8 elections and take part in the election campaign.

Manisha is the granddaughter of the late B.P. Koirala, Nepal's first elected prime minister, who in the 1960s bore the brunt of the then king Mahendra's attacks on parliamentary parties.

Mahendra's son King Gyanendra followed in his father's footsteps last year, seizing absolute power and jailing most opposition leaders. The king's direct rule is being opposed by B.P. Koirala's Nepali Congress party under the leadership of his younger brother G.P. Koirala.

Manisha, however, has chosen to support the king. So does her father, Prakash Koirala, who last year was made a minister by the king in his handpicked cabinet.

While Nepali Congress is boycotting the polls, Prakash Koirala has formed a new party, Nepali Congress (Nationalist), which is taking part in the controversial exercise.

"It is my duty to come to Nepal during elections," Manisha told the state-run Rising Nepal daily in an interview published Wednesday. "I will help create an atmosphere for polls."

Manisha came down heavily on the opposition parties as well as the international community for not supporting the polls.

"They did not say a word when Bhutan's king evicted 100,000 of his citizens of Nepali origin who have been suffering," she said, referring to the 10-year-long residence of the Bhutanese refugees in eastern Nepal.

She said King Gyanendra had seized power last year to restore democracy. "His Majesty has asked for three years, which is not a very long period," she said. "The king is democratic."

The actress said the political parties should join the king to help resolve the Maoist insurgency. "They should open up ways for negotiations," she said.

"They should first pay attention to the current national crisis and only then raise their political agenda."

Her statements came even as her granduncle and three-time former prime minister G.P. Koirala appealed to the UN and international community not to recognise controversial local elections Feb 8.

The octogenarian leader, who was released from house arrest Sunday, said the civic elections called by King Gyanendra have no "social, political, legal or moral base".

"I therefore appeal to the international community, including the UN, to de-recognise it," Koirala said in a statement carried by the local media Wednesday.

Koirala's Nepali Congress party is leading a seven-party opposition alliance opposing Gyanendra's power seizure by force last year and is now actively campaigning for a boycott of the polls.

Another former prime minister and senior leader of the same party, Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, has also broken his virtual political retirement and urged the king to put off the polls and begin reconciliation with the opposition parties.

Bhattarai, perceived as being close to the palace, said the king should end direct rule, release all political detainees and ask the parties to dialogue to form an all-party government.

Even the king's traditional allies have started expressing concern at the growing turbulence in Nepal.

"China is very concerned about recent political changes in Nepal," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Kong Quan said Tuesday in a brief statement.

"We hope all forces in Nepal can narrow their differences through dialogue and work together for the country's development and prosperity."