One of the most controversial royal family member in Nepali royalty – Paras Shah has gone trough a very tough time in his life. A prince without a hope to ascent to the throne – suddenly and unexpectedly became the crown prince. But, before he could enjoy the princehood and wait to be crowned – monarchy was abolished.

Here is the full biography of the unlucky crown prince:

Paras as a Person

Family timeline:

• 30 December 1971 – Born to Gyanendra Shah (father) and Komal Shah (mother)
• 25 January 2000 – Married Himani Shah
• 12 December 2000 – Purnika Shah was born (Daughter)
• 30 July 2002 – Hridayendra Shah was born (Son)
• 16 October 2003 – Kritika Shah was born (Daughter)

Paras was uncontrollable. He wouldn’t listen to his parents or anybody else. When sober he behaves perfectly normally. But, under the influence of alcohol, he becomes uncontrollable. Every time he makes a mess, he usually is drunk. So, most of the incidents have happened in restaurants and hotels.

His relationship with his wife doesn’t seem to be that good. But, Himani seem to be living comfortably with her in-laws.

Education – Paras was educated in Budha Nilakantha School and St. Joseph College in Darjeeling. He also attended a US college and a British College. But, he never completed his undergraduate degree. One of the professors had told that was a mediocre student (ser ref 2).

– Paras did his Junior High from North Point, Darjeeling.

– High School from Budhanilkanta School, Kathmandu.

– Schiller International University and The United Kingdom for further studies in Business Administration.

In music paras loves the rock and heavy metal of Metallica and Guns and Roses. In sports he’s into swimming and basketball. He’s also a keen player in Chess and Monolpoly.

Singer killed

7 months after marrying  Himani in Aug. 2000 – Paras allegedly killed well known singer Praveen Gurung when he ran his vehicle over him. Huge protest against Paras was organized. According to a BBC News, more than 600,000 people signed a petition to the late King Birendra demanding an action against Paras. Paras didn’t face any charges. But, an army officer later claimed the responsibility for the incident. (See – Ref 1)

Royal Massacre and Crown Prince

In less than the Praveen Gurung case, on  1 June 2001, the King, Queen and all of their family members were killed in the infamous Royal Massacre. The throne was then transferred to Paras’s fatehr Gyanendra. It was the second time Gyanendra had become the king of Nepal. In his childhood – when his grandfather fleed to India, the Rana prime minster of the time, had made Gyanendra a king. But, when Tribhuwan returned back, he took the crown from Gyanendra.

Paras wasn’t named the Crown Prince. Gyanendra strategically waited till 26 October 2001 to announce Paras being the Crown Prince of Nepal. That was during the Dashain holiday when most of the Kathmandu residents had gone to their homes and were in festive mood. Nobody protested the appointment.

In September of 2007 Paras had a mild heart attack. He was admitted to a hospital in Kathmandu and after a few days stay, he was discharged.

Royal Regime Abolished

In the mean time, Gynendra took the full power to himself and tried to rule in autocratic way. That backfired and he was forced to leave the palace on 28 May 2008.

Paras was not happy and went to Singapore with his wife and children. After a short stay in Singapore, Paras moved to Thailand. His wife Himani returned back to Nepal with her children. Paras used go to and from Thailand and Nepal. He found a Thai girlfriend Kannika Chayarsan.

On Dec 11, 2010, Paras and Rubel Chaudhary were engaged in heated discussion at Tiger Tops lodge in Chitwan. In his anger, Paras took out his gun and went outside. He fired the gun in the air. Rubel Chaudhary is the son-in-law of Sujata Koirala, foreign minister at that time. Suajata’s father, late Girija Prasad Koirala was the prime minister of Nepal. Rubel was much more influential than Paras.

The matter went to the court. In April 2011 the court decided that Paras hadn’t behaved properly and warned not to repeat similar offences in future. The case was dropped. But, Paras repeated similar incident the very next month – on May 2011 by manhandling the General Manager of  Casino Royale, Shailendra Shumsher Rana, at Hotel Yak and Yeti.

Thailand Problems

Oct 23, 2012 – Arrested with girlfriend Kannika in Thailand for possessing 3.4 gram of marijuana. He was later granted bail of 10,000 bhat after one night in jail.

Note: The following portion of the article needs to be re-written and updated on Feb 28, 2017.

November 2012 – He was rearrested on the charge of vandalising a luxury apartment he had rented.

December 2012 – written to the Nepal Embassy in Bangkok for the security of his life and property in Thailand. Wrote- some Indians, Bangladeshi’s have been following me.

Feb 19 2013 – Major heart attack and hospitalized in Bangkok. Regained unconsciousness after 11 days. Himani and Gyanendra went to meet him.

March 29 2013 – Discharged from hospital

July 10, 2014 – arrested with 12.6 gram marijuana in Thailand

Oct 10, 2014 – arrested with marijuana and drugs again. The court asked 45 lakh

Dec 2012 – Asked Nepali Embassy for help

Feb 19, 2013 – Major heart attack. Unconscious for 11 days.

March 29, 2013 – Discharged from hospital

July 10, 2014 – arrested in Thailand again

Oct 10, 2014 – arrested again

Nepal Return

Paras returned back to Nepal in March 2015. He wasn’t allowed in Nirmal Niwas. So, he lived in a rented place in Kundalini Club. After a while in Kundalini, Paras moved to Jeevan Kunj. Paras’s stay in Jeevan Kunj was cut short by the earthquake of April 24, 2015.

The earthquake rendered Jeevan Kunj unsafe to live in.

In June 2015 – Paras shared photos of himself with his children. He took them in a ride too. A photograph of Paras with his kids in his car was released online.

This portion is to be updated later.

Honors:
Suprashidda Prabala Gorkha Dakshina Bahu, The Coronation Medal 1975
The Silver Jubilee Medal 1999
The Bishista Sewa Medal 1998.

Reference :

Ref 1 - BBC News profile of Paras
Ref 2 – Paras’s education and his mediocre qualifications
Ref 3 – Paras and Rubel Chaudhary case BBC