Thousands of supporters have greeted Nepal’s former king in capital Kathmandu and demanded his abolished monarchy be reinstated and Hinduism brought back as a state religion. An estimated 10,000 supporters of Gyanendra Shah blocked the main entrance to Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport on Sunday as he arrived from a tour of western Nepal. Hundreds of riot police blocked the protesters from entering the airport and there was no violence. Massive street protests in 2006 forced Gyanendra to give up his authoritarian rule but many Nepalis have since grown frustrated with the republic and a struggling economy.
