Prekshya Shah

Princess Prekshya Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal (19 January 1952 – 12 November 2001) was a princess consort of Nepal who died in a helicopter accident in Rara Lake along with three other passengers.^[1][2]

Princess Prekshya
Born	(1952-01-19)19 January 1952 Kathmandu, Nepal
Died	12 November 2001(2001-11-12) (aged 49) Rara, Nepal (2001 Fishtail Air Eurocopter AS350 crash)
Spouse	Prince Dhirendra of Nepal ​ ​ (m. 1972; died 2001)​
Issue	Princess Puja Princess Dilasha Princess Sitashma
Names Prekshya Rajya Lakshmi Devi (Nepali: प्रेक्षा राज्य लक्ष्मी देवी)
House	Rana (by birth) Shah (by marriage)
Father	Kendra Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana
Mother	Shree Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah
Religion	Hinduism

Life

Princess Prekshya was the younger sister of Queen Aishwarya of Nepal and Queen Komal of Nepal. She was educated at St Mary's School, Jawalakhel; St Helen's Convent, Kurseong; and Tribhuvan University.

Princess Prekshya married her second cousin Prince Dhirendra, a brother of King Birendra at Kathmandu, on 13 February 1972. Prekshya and Dhirendra had three daughters:^[3]

• Princess Puja Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal (born 1977), married Captain Dr Rajiv Raj Shahi in 1998. She had children;
• Princess Dilasha Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal (born 1979),^[4] married in 2003 Adarsha Bikram Rana. She had children;
• Princess Sitashma Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal (born 1981),^[5] married Abinesh Shah in 2003. She had children.

Princess Prekshya did not get along with her husband. She and Dhirendra separated when he renounced the style of Royal Highness, which Prekshya did not. They did not divorce, but Dhirendra went to live in London with an English woman who became his partner.^[6]

Dhirendra was killed in the Nepalese royal massacre on 1 June 2001; Princess Prekshya did not attend the event due to back problems.^[7] She died on 12 November 2001, in a helicopter crash: she was returning to Nepal on the helicopter when suddenly, right under Lake Rara, the helicopter crashed; her lifeless body was found in the waters of the lake.^[8] Her body was later transported to Kathmandu for cremation.^[9][10] After the death of the Princess, the Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal declared that there was a bond between the royal massacre and the death of Prekshya.^[11]

Patronages

• Member of Raj Sabha (The King's Council) (1977).
• Co-Chief of the Scout Movement of Nepal (1975).

Styles

• Lady Prekshya Rajya Lakshmi Devi (1952–1972).
• HRH Princess Prekshya Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah of Nepal (1972–2001).

Honours

National honours

• Member of the Order of the Gurkha Right Hand, 1st class (1975).
• Member of the Order of the Three Divine Powers, 1st class (23 October 2001).
• King Birendra Investiture Medal (24 February 1975).

Foreign honours

• Honorary Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO, 17 February 1986).

References

1. "Another skeleton rattles in Nepal's ex-royal cupboard". The Times of India. 10 December 2008. Archived from the original on 17 February 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
2. "Business News Today: Read Latest Business news, India Business News Live, Share Market & Economy News". The Economic Times.
3. "Princess Preksha killed in air crash Kathmandu, November 12, 2001". Ra Online.
4. "Nepal's Ex-Princesses Have Found Paying Work". womensenews.org. 25 March 2011. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
5. "Nepal's Ex-Princesses Have Found Paying Work". womensenews.org. 25 March 2011. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
6. "Copter Crash Kills Nepal Princess". AP News. 12 November 2001. Retrieved 12 November 2001.
7. "Copter Crash Kills Nepal Princess". AP News. 12 November 2001. Retrieved 12 November 2001.
8. "Princess dies in helicopter crash". The Telegraph. 12 November 2001. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
9. "Princess Preksha killed in air crash Kathmandu, November 12, 2001". Ra Online.
10. "Nepali princess dies in helicopter crash". The Irish Times. 12 November 2001. Retrieved 12 November 2001.
11. "Nepal palace massacre linked to princess' death". The New Indian Express. 17 April 2009. Retrieved 17 April 2009.