| King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya | |
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| King Birendra(left) and Queen Aishwarya(right) | |
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| Tenure | 31 January 1972 – 1 June 2001 (29 years, 121 days) |
| Spouse | King Birendra of Nepal |
| Full name | |
| Queen Aishwarya Rajya Laxmi Devi | |
| Born | 7 November 1949 |
| Died | 1 June 2001 (aged 51) |
Aishwarya Rajyalaxmi Devi Shah (7 November 1949 – 1 June 2001) was the Queen of Nepal from 1972 to 2001. She was the wife of King Birendra and the mother of Crown Prince Dipendra, Prince Nirajan, and Princess Shruti.
She hailed from the aristrocratic Rana family which had ruled Nepal for 104 years, being the oldest daughter of General Kendra Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana (1927–1982) and his wife Shree Rajya Laxmi Rana (1928–2005). Her family had been the effective rulers of Nepal until the 1950s and she was ever conscious of this fact. In 1970, she married Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, then Crown Prince of Nepal. She was considered to be staunchly royalist, believing in the absolute power of the monarchy, while her husband was more open to democratic governance.
Due to her forceful nature and her impetuousness, she earned many enemies, most notably the leftist parties of Nepal. In 1998, a crowd threw stones at her and tight security measures had to be adopted for her future public appearances. Queen Aishwarya was considered to be the power behind her husband's throne and the real ruler of Nepal. Her royal aides were often directed to act on orders that best suited and were most likely to further her own political ambitions.
Due to her strong and domineering personality, Queen Aishwarya was often considered to be difficult and irascible. Many incidents were reported about her abrasive behavior, both in private and in public. Her royal aides were commanded to be attentive 24 hours a day and often sent to short detention facilities if the Queen was dissatisfied with their work. One well-talked about incident involved one of her most highly decorated generals, whose stars she grabbed and tossed because of her displeasure over his alleged disrespectfulness to her. Another incident involved her exile of Prince Dhirendra of Nepal, her husband's younger brother, from Nepal. Dhirendra had married her youngest sister, Prekshya, in 1973 and had three daughters with her. Notwithstanding this, he embarked on an affair with a British woman, Shirley Greaney, and expressed a desire to divorce his wife. When Prekshya confided in her sister, Aishwarya promptly intervened, stripped Dhirendra of his titles and possessions and forced him into exile. He was also told that Shirley Greaney was not welcome in Nepal.
Queen Aishwarya was shot dead along with her husband, King Birendra; her son, Prince Nirajan; her daughter, Princess Shruti; and seven other royal family members. It is widely believed that the motive for the Queen's murder was her strong opposition to the Crown Prince's proposed marriage to Devyani Rana. Her face was so badly disfigured by the gunshot wound that, for the widely attended state funeral procession, it was covered by a china doll bearing her likeness.[1]
| Royal titles | ||
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| Preceded by Ratna |
Queen Consort of Nepal 1972-2001 |
Succeeded by Komal |