Royal cows left in limbo

After the king, it is now the turn of his cows to face removal from Nepal's royal palace, two days after it was turned into a museum, a government official said yesterday.

Gyanendra, the last king of Nepal, left the main palace last week after a special assembly voted in May to abolish the 239-year-old monarchy and turn the Himalayan nation into a republic.

But Gyanendra's 60 cows still graze in the sprawling grounds of the Narayanhiti palace in the heart of Kathmandu. He used the cows for fresh milk but authorities say the animals, considered holy by Hindus, must also leave.