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Devyani refuses to depose before Nepal probe panel

The late Nepalese crown prince Dipendra's alleged girlfriend, Devyani Rana, has refused to depose before the committee investigating the June 1 palace massacre in Nepal.

Dipendra, who is accused of killing his father King Birendra, mother Queen Aiswarya, brother Prince Niranjan, sister Princess Shruti and other members of Nepal's royal family, allegedly spoke to Devyani the day the massacre took place. The prince shot himself after the murders, and died in hospital two days later.

Quoting sources close to the panel, Nepalese newspaper Spacetime Dainik said Devyani cited security reasons for her inability to appear before the committee.

Devyani, who was contacted through the Nepal embassy in Delhi, has now been asked to submit in writing details about her relationship with the prince. Earlier reports said the 29 year old was in Moscow and later London, but a recent report claimed she is in India. Union minister Vasundhara Raje is her mother Usha Raje's younger sister, Congress leader Madhavrao Scindia her maternal uncle.

According to The Kathmandu Post, she was one of the ten people with whom Dipendra spoke before the murders.

Initial reports suggested that Dipendra gunned down his family following their opposition to his relationship with Devyani. A report in Newsweek magazine alleged this week that the prince had married Devyani secretly.

Her father Pashupati Shamsher Rana, a former minister, is currently general secretary of the Opposition Rashtriya Prajatantra Party and a member of the Nepalese parliament.

PTI

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