By Suraj Belbase – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

A living nightmare occurred in Nepal on 1 June 2001 when many of the Nepalese Royal Family were slaughtered by one of their own.

The Royal Family was gathered at Narayanhiti Palace for a party when Crown Prince Dipendra began his murder spree.

The Crown Prince shot and killed his parents, King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya, along with his siblings, aunts and other family members.

Dipendra was drunk after the family dinner, and he acted out, so the King had him escorted out to his room. However, a cousin of Dipendra later claimed the Crown Prince only pretended to be drunk so that he would get kicked out of the party.

An hour later, he returned to the party with a combat shotgun (SPAS-12) to begin his assassination. He brought another bag with an M16.

King Birendra was the first to be shot, and then the Crown Prince left. He returned carrying the M16 and saw his family attempting to save his father. He began his next attack, but his uncle, Prince Dhirendra, intervened but was killed. He continued to shoot other members of his family.

Princess Shruti tried to come to the aid of her husband, but the Crown Prince slaughtered his younger sister. Shruti’s husband, Kumar Gorakh, survived the attack.

Reportedly, Queen Aishwarya bravely followed her son out of the room to attempt to stop his massacre, but he murdered his younger brother in front of their mother. Aishwarya then shouted, “You have killed your father, you have killed your brother, kill me too,” before he turned the gun on her. She tried to run but was shot numerous times in the neck and back in the palace garden as she attempted to flee. 

After killing his mother, he crossed a bridge on the palace grounds and shot himself. He did not die and fell into a coma. He was declared King of Nepal while hospitalised before he died three days later.

Crown Prince Dipendra murdered ten people during his attack and wounded four.

The members of the Royal Family were all given state funerals and were cremated at Pashupatinath Temple. A few days later, a Hindu katto ceremony was held to exorcise the spirit of King Birendra from Nepal.

Dipendra’s uncle, Prince Gyanendra, who was absent from the party, succeeded to the throne, which many found suspicious.

No motive for the murder was ever discovered, and Nepal turned into a republic just a few years later.