20 years of macabre Royal Massacre ( with photos)

KATHMANDU, June 2: King Birendra Shah and his family members were shot dead at the Narayanhiti Royal Palace twenty years ago. 

Along with the then King Birendra Shah,  his wife queen Aishwarya Shah, his two sons-- Crown Prince Dipendra Shah and Prince Nirajan Shah, his daughter  princess Shruti and other seven  royal family members were assassinated. 

Although the then Crown Prince Dipendra Shah was said to have gunned down the royal members in the unpleasant incident that took the palace on June 1, 2001, many interpret it as a conspiracy. It still remains shrouded in mystery. 

Family gatherings and dinner parties used to be held at the Tribhuvan Sadan at the palace. It is said that Dipendra, dressed in military uniform and using two guns, killed the royal members. 

Though a two-member high-level Inquiry Committee comprising then Supreme Court Justice Keshav Prasad Upadhyay and Speaker Taranath Ranabhat convicted the ‘drug-addled’ Dipendra for the massacre , the general public are still not ready to accept it.

Here are some photos captured after the incident, in the course of investigation, on the premises of the royal palace, which has not turned into a museum.

Photo courtesy: Shree Prasad Pandit