Nepal King, Queen shot dead by Crown Prince Dipendra

KATHMANDU, JUNE 2. In a shocking incident last night, Nepal's Crown Prince Dipendra gunned down his parents, King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya, and six other members of the royal family before shooting himself. The Crown Prince, battling for life in hospital today, was named the new monarch of the tiny Himalayan kingdom.

Sources said the 29-year-old Crown Prince fired indiscriminately in a fit of rage as the royal family sat for dinner at the Narayan Hity palace around 11 p.m. (local time) last night following arguments over his marriage plans. Prince Dipendra, who is in a coma and on life-support systems in the military hospital, was named the King by the Government State Council, despite uncertainty over his condition as per constitutional provisions. His uncle and younger brother of King Birendra, Prince Gyanendra, was declared ``regent''. Prince Gyanendra was out of town at the time of the shootout.

``Since the King passed away, the Council declared Crown Prince Dipendra as the King. But since the Crown Prince is in hospital and is mentally and physically unsuitable to carry out his duties, the State Council appoints Prince Gyanendra as assistant to the Crown,'' a council statement said.

Besides the 55-year-old King and Queen Aishwarya, 51, their younger son Prince Niranjan, 22, daughter Princess Shruti, 25, Princess Sharada Shaha and Princess Shanti Singh, sisters of the late King, Kumar Khadga Bikram Shah, Princess Sharada's husband, and Princess Jayanti Shah, cousin of the late King, were shot dead. Three others injured in the shootout were Gorakh Bikram (Princess Shruti's husband), Komal Shah, the late King's cousin and Prince Dhirendra, the King's youngest brother.

Sources said the Crown Prince had an argument with his parents at the dining table over his plans to get married and was asked to retire since he was reportedly in an inebriated state. The King is believed to have threatened Prince Dipendra that he would be bypassed in the line of succession in favour of his younger brother if he did not bow to the wishes of the Queen on the choice of his bride.

Heated exchanges

As the heated exchanges continued, the Prince stormed out of the dining hall but soon returned in battle fatigues with an assault rifle and a pistol and opened fire indiscriminately, the sources said.

The Queen was reportedly opposed to his decision to marry because of a warning by astrologers that if he got married and begot children before turning 35 his father would die. The Queen wanted him to wait for six more years. There were also reports that the Queen was opposed his choice of bride, a daughter of a former minister and member of the aristocratic Rana family that ruled Nepal till 1951.

A five-day state mourning has been declared in Nepal and the national flag will fly at half-mast for 13 days as a mark of respect to the royal couple.

PM's car stoned

Late in the evening, the Prime Minister, Mr. Girija Prasad Koirala's car was stoned by an angry mob outside the military hospital as the funeral cortege carrying the bodies of slain King and Queen and three other immediate members of the royal family left for the site of the cremation.

According to police, a big stone was hurled at Mr. Koirala's car but he escaped unhurt. A few arrests have been made in this connection, they said. Some agitated youths also made vain attempts to manhandle some Ministers.

- PTI

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