Ousted president Manuel Zelaya, right, salutes during singing of the Honduran national anthem at the Brazilian Embassy after his arrival in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa on Monday. (Edgard Garrido/Reuters)

The interim government of Honduras imposed a curfew on Monday after deposed president Manuel Zelaya returned to the nation's capital, Tegucigalpa, earlier in the day in a bid to reclaim his office.

The curfew applies to the entire country from 4 p.m. to 7 a.m. local time every day until Wednesday. The aim of the curfew is to "conserve calm in the country," government spokesman Rene Zepeda told Reuters news agency.

Earlier on Monday, Zelaya told local television station Channel 36, "I am here in Tegucigalpa. I am here for the restoration of democracy, to call for dialogue."

Seeking safety at the Brazilian Embassy in the Honduran capital, Zelaya called on his countrymen to come to Tegucigalpa for a peaceful protest. Zelaya said he had "evaded a thousand obstacles" to return.

His surprise arrival sparked demonstrations in the streets outside the embassy as thousands of supporters, who have protested for months since his ouster, cheered his return.

Zelaya's options 'limited'

Zelaya was expelled from Honduras at gunpoint on June 28 just hours before a rogue referendum he had called that defied the country's courts and congress.

Opponents feared Zelaya would use the referendum to remain in power after his term ended on Jan. 27, 2010. The Honduran constitution limits presidents to a single four-year term.

His ouster was condemned internationally, including by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and U.S. President Barack Obama.

De facto leader Roberto Micheletti, who has said Zelaya would be arrested and jailed if he returned to Honduras, asked Brazil to hand him over to the interim government and has shut down the capital's airport.

Zelaya told The Associated Press that he was trying to establish contact with the interim government to start negotiations on a solution to the standoff that started when soldiers flew him out of the country.

There was no immediate response from Micheletti, who denied earlier Monday that Zelaya was even in Honduras.

If Zelaya is arrested, protesters who have demonstrated against his ouster could turn violent, Vicki Gass of the Washington Office on Latin America said.

Juan Carlos Hidalgo, project co-ordinator for Latin America at the libertarian Cato Institute, said Zelaya should expect to be jailed.

"If he is back, his options are quite limited, because the moment that his location is discovered or that he publicly comes out of the trees where he's hiding, he's going to be arrested for sure," he said.