20 years after the royal massacre in Nepal: the prince who murdered his family and became king unconscious

The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal It is a small Asian country located at the foot of the Himalayas. Since 2006, and after ten years of civil war, the monarchy has been abolished to give birth to a republic. Although this fact ended more than two hundred years of rule, its end began a few years before.

A party that ends in tragedy

On the night of Friday June 1, 2001, a massacre took place in the main hall of the royal palace of Narayanhity. Queen Aishwarya and King Birendra were celebrating a party when they were murdered by their son, heir to the throne Dipendra.

In his attack, the royal firstborn killed not only his parents but also seven other members of the dynasty, including his two younger brothers. Afterwards, Dipendra He attempted suicide, but was unsuccessful, so he was hospitalized in a coma.

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Faced with the absence of kings, and following the Nepalese succession, Dipendra he was proclaimed king despite his unconsciousness. His reign will last only four days. June 4 Dipendra he passed away and the crown passed to his uncle, Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev of Nepal.

Survivors’ statements

“Around nine o’clock I heard a gunshot, I thought it was someone playing a joke. There were screams and I heard someone say ‘His Majesty has been shot,’ “Rajiv Shahi, son-in-law of one of the king’s brothers, told a press conference.

The witness described that at first Dipendra only shot his father, but an attempt by his uncle to stop him “drove him mad and there he started shooting anyone who came in front of him”.

Shahi assured that “Dipendra staggered and fell” while firing and said: “How many weapons did he use? I am not sure. I did not count. It was too fast. The massacre only lasted a minute and a half ”.

For his part, the late King Birendra’s uncle, Maheswar Kumar Singh, assured the BBC signal that “they were together having a drink before dinner when Prince Dipendra entered the room dressed in combat gear and fitted with an automatic rifle “.

Shahi said that hours before he had spoken with Dipendra and that “nothing seemed to be wrong to him”. The witness to the event reported that the murderer “stood by his side and fired a shot at the ceiling before setting off a hellish shootout which reached several of the participants within seconds.”

The theories behind the murder

With his death, Dipendra took the secret of the reasons that led him to commit such a bloody act. Different researchers have tried to find answers to the reason for the decision and finally there were three theories they arrived at.

The main hypothesis hides a love story. Like Montagues and Capulet, the Shah dynasty had a historic rivalry with the Rana family.

Dipendra He dreamed of marrying young Devyani Rana, but his parents banned the relationship because it was a lineage they considered to be of a lower class. Several historians agree that it was this refusal that led Dipendra to commit the murders, but other versions still exist.

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The second conjecture indicates that during the feast, and as a result of a strong state of drunkenness, the prince began to insult one of the royal guests. In the midst of a scandal, his father demands that he leave the Palace. Dipendra left the scene, but returned a few minutes later with several guns and sealed the Royal Nepalese massacre.

Finally, there is a minor theory which says that Dipendra was opposed to the monarchical management of Nepal and that it was political issues that motivated him to commit the act.