Nepal Rallies to Welcome Former King Gyanendra, Calling for Restoration of Monarchy

On February 14, AP reported that supporters of former Nepalese King Gyanendra Veer Vikram Shah Dev gathered outside Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on Friday, February 13, to welcome him back from eastern Nepal. The crowd chanted, "Bring back the king, we love our king more than ourselves, restore the constitutional monarchy" while Gyanendra waved to the people. A massive protest in 2006 forced Gyanendra to relinquish power, and two years later, parliament unanimously voted to change the government from a monarchy to a democratic republic, making Gyanendra the last king of Nepal. In 2025, over 10,000 supporters rallied at the airport, which escalated into violence resulting in two deaths and many injuries. Gyanendra has not commented on the calls to restore the monarchy, and he has slim chances of returning to power as his support remains less significant than that of political parties opposing the idea. This movement occurs before the March elections, with pro-monarchy groups holding around 5% of parliamentary seats and hoping to increase their representation.