Just as in the Gen Z movement decades later, in 1952 Dr. Kunwar Inderjit (KI) Singh’s rebel army entered the Prime Minister’s residence with the intention of capturing or killing Prime Minister Matrikaprasad Koirala. However, by fate, he had already reached the safety of the royal palace with his family.

Lila Prasad Lohani had just returned home from Singha Durbar to his residence in Dillibazar when rumors spread across the city—Dr. K.I. Singh had rebelled. He had reportedly seized Singha Durbar with 400–500 rebel troops.

At first, Lila Prasad couldn’t believe it. After all, in 1951, Singh had rebelled during the tripartite Delhi agreement between the King, the Rana regime, and the Nepali Congress but had been captured and imprisoned within Singha Durbar itself.

Singh had considered the Delhi agreement a “betrayal” and decided to continue the 1950 revolt. His stubbornness forced then-Prime Minister Mohan Shamsher Rana to allow the Indian army to enter Nepal for the first time.

Before the revolt, Singh had fought from the Bhairahawa front. The Nepali Congress was not in the mood to sign the 1951 Delhi tripartite agreement. But the then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru convinced Congress leaders: “We had to fight a long struggle against the British. But what was the result? A divided two-part country. Your situation has not worsened.”

At that time, with King Tribhuvan in exile in Delhi and Congress rebelling against the Rana regime, there was no capacity to bargain. Therefore, the leaders had no choice but to accept Nehru’s proposal.

Amidst this political context, Singh’s rebellion put the Nepal government under pressure. Initially, the government paid little attention, treating it as a political issue. But when Singh broke out of jail and began recruiting criminals into his group, the government became serious. Robberies increased near border points connected with India.

At that time, the route from Kathmandu to Bhairahawa was not established. One had to travel via Syangja. Therefore, the government requested India for security assistance until Nepali forces arrived.

In 1951, Indian troops entering Bhairahawa encircled the city. During this incident, Shyamsundar Sharma, Govind Pradhan, Dambar Bahadur K.C., Krishna Bahadur K.C., and Gangaprasad Acharya—who had escaped from Bhairahawa jail—surrendered in Kathmandu and were placed under guard inside Singha Durbar.

However, Singh succeeded in breaking through the Indian encirclement. The government declared him a dacoit and offered a reward of 5,000 rupees for his capture. When the Nepali army reached Bhairahawa, Indian troops returned home.

The Nepali army then launched a campaign to capture Singh, who was apprehended in September 1951 near Ghorbhuji, close to Thakure Khola in Palpa.

Along with him, two or three armed rebels who had escaped jail were also captured. The day before, the Nepali army had detained 32 people.

During the rebellion, Singh had a group of 150 people. Once all were captured, Singh was brought to Kathmandu and placed under the protection of the defense force within Singha Durbar.

Lila Prasad initially could not believe the rebellion because the Home Ministry had issued a statement assuring that the government was strong enough to maintain peace and security, punishing anyone attempting rebellion with full force.

The defense force was the Nepali Congress’s trained security squad, prepared to fight against the Ranas. Therefore, it was politically disciplined. Recalling the event, Lila Prasad said, “When we went to the office, they would sit outside in the sun, surrounded on all sides. That’s why I didn’t initially believe it.”

But as security activity increased at night, he realized the truth. “Soon it became clear. There was a rebellion in the defense force. Dr. K.I. Singh had seized Singha Durbar,” he said.

The rebel troops also captured Radio Nepal within Singha Durbar. At that time, Matrikaprasad Koirala had been Prime Minister for exactly one week. Matrika was first appointed on January 15, 1952.

“We were working day and night to draft the country’s first budget. That’s why we stayed late. That day too, I left the office late,” said Lila Prasad, then an undersecretary at the Ministry of Finance.

On the night of the revolt, then-Finance Minister Subarna Shamsher Rana and Home & Information Minister Suryaprasad Upadhyay sought refuge at the Indian Embassy, which was then located at what is now Shital Niwas (the current Presidential Palace). They reportedly advised the Prime Minister to also take shelter at the embassy.

Following disputes with the Nepali Congress, Vedananda Mishra, a central member of the National Praja Party formed by Matrikaprasad in 1952, wrote in his 1978 book Matrika Babu that the Prime Minister did not accept this suggestion.

Mishra wrote: “Following the orders and request of His Majesty King Tribhuvan, General Ranga Bikram and Colonel Teertha Bikram were sent by motor to the palace, and the Prime Minister arrived at the palace with his family.”

The rebels had reached the Prime Minister’s residence (now the British Embassy) intending to capture or kill him, but he had already entered the royal palace with his family.

After this night, Indian Ambassador Chandreshwar Prasad Narayan Singh arrived early the next morning at the royal palace. He requested King Tribhuvan to approve the entry of Indian paratroopers into Nepal.

According to Mishra’s book, Matrika Koirala responded: “This revolt is against me personally, not against His Majesty. Therefore, the government must observe 24 hours before suppressing the rebellion. If the government fails to suppress it, I will resign.”

After hearing the Prime Minister, King Tribhuvan told the Indian ambassador in English: “My Prime Minister is correct. I must give at least 24 hours before the revolt is suppressed.”

The ambassador was not pleased and said: “If something goes wrong, there will be no one to report to me.” Despite pressure, King Tribhuvan remained firm. This marked the start of the campaign to suppress K.I. Singh’s rebellion.

After taking control of Singha Durbar, Singh sought to negotiate with King Tribhuvan. He sent his message via Hemanta Shamsher Rana, former professor at Tribhuvan University. “He proposed Field Marshal Rudra Shamsher Rana as mediator,” Hemanta said.

Singh chose Rudra because he had been the commander in Bhairahawa during the 1950 revolt, under whom Singh had risen in the revolutionary ranks.

While Singh sent the proposal, a detachment of the army under Commander Kiran Shamsher Rana had surrounded Singha Durbar. “When my father reached Bhadrakali for mediation, firing had started, but he entered and left the palace,” Hemanta said.

Rudra’s mediation allowed Singh and some associates to flee toward Banepa. Ramprasad Rai was also part of Singh’s team. During the anti-Rana movement, he had participated in the campaign to capture the eastern hills under the leadership of Naradmuni Thulung and Shripal Rai from the Congress’s defense squad.

Like Singh, he too considered the Delhi Agreement a “betrayal” and revolted in Bhojpur. He was captured and held in Bhojpur jail for 26 days. After being released, he entered Kathmandu and in January and delivered a speech at New Road, declaring that their rebellion was still ongoing and that they had not surrendered their weapons.

During his speech, Ramprasad Rai was arrested and imprisoned at the central jail in Tripureshwor. However, he carried out a “jailbreak” the very next day. Gathering his captured comrades, he marched toward Singha Durbar.

After freeing K.I. Singh, they managed to keep Singha Durbar under their control for about 24 hours.

According to Tarahang Rai, the author of Ramprasad Rai’s memoir, Rai mysteriously died while traveling with K.I. Singh toward Tibet. In the incident, two rebels and one civilian were killed near Tundikhel and Dharahara. However, the government failed to capture Singh.

The then-Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had also shown interest in the matter and discussed it with Matrika Prasad Koirala. Three days after the incident, a delegation from India led by Foreign Ministry official Parmeshwar Narayan Haksar — accompanied by Indian Army and Air Force officers — arrived in Nepal to assess the security situation.

In a letter sent by Matrika Prasad to Nehru on January 31, 1952, it was mentioned, “As K.I. Singh fled toward Tibet, we were completely unable to pursue him.”

Following this episode, it became easier for India’s military mission to gain entry into Nepal.