Unfortunately, the next international Koch conference in Nepal was held four years ago, at a time the kingdom was racked by political turmoil.

King Gyanendra, whose Shah dynasty is also related to the former rulers of Rajasthan, had seized absolute power with the help of the army and India had suspended diplomatic ties with the royal regime.

It would have been politically incorrect for the three-times member of parliament and blueblooded Gayatri Devi to visit Nepal at that juncture and the Rajbanshi clan's wish to meet her remained unfulfilled.

'We were sad to hear about her death but sadder because Nepal's media has ignored the news totally,' Rajbanshi said. 'We came to hear of it only on Thursday after an Indian television channel reported her passing away.'

The community is now planning a tribute to her in Nepal's state media, especially when the Nepali state-run daily Gorkhapatra carries a page in the Rajbanshi language.

They also plan to hold a memorial meeting.