B. P. Koirala
Who was B. P. Koirala?
Founding leader of the Nepali Congress party and first elected Prime Minister of Nepal in 1959. Known as the 'Father of Democracy' in Nepal, he also wrote novels and was imprisoned for his political activities.
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on B. P. Koirala (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala, commonly known as B. P. Koirala, was born on September 8, 1914, in Varanasi, British India, and passed away on July 21, 1982, in Kathmandu, Nepal. He was a revolutionary, statesman, and novelist, and one of the founding leaders of the Nepali Congress party. He holds an important place in Nepal's political and literary history. He was the brother of Matrika Prasad Koirala and Girija Prasad Koirala, both of whom also served as Prime Ministers of Nepal, and he was the grandfather of Bollywood actors Manisha Koirala and Siddharth Koirala. His wife was Sushila Koirala.
Koirala studied at several well-known institutions, including Scottish Church College at the University of Calcutta, Banaras Hindu University, and Harish Chandra Postgraduate College. While studying in India, he was influenced by anti-colonial nationalism and socialist ideas that were changing South Asia during the mid-twentieth century. These ideas shaped his commitment to democratic governance and socio-economic reform as linked goals. He became an early and active organizer against Nepal's Rana oligarchy, which had held power for over a century.
Koirala played a key role in the 1950–1951 revolution that ended 104 years of Rana rule in Nepal, opening up possibilities for the country's political future. He then helped develop the Nepali Congress into a working democratic party. In the 1959 general elections, the Nepali Congress won the majority, and Koirala became Nepal's first democratically elected Prime Minister. His time in office lasted only 18 months. In December 1960, King Mahendra carried out a royal coup, dismissed the elected government, and had Koirala arrested. Koirala spent years in prison and later in exile, during which his health worsened significantly.
Even while imprisoned and in exile, Koirala kept thinking and working politically. He was a committed Democratic Socialist who believed that political freedoms meant little in a poor country without real socio-economic transformation. He continued to advocate for the return of democracy in Nepal throughout the period of Panchayat rule enforced by the monarchy. Koirala also wrote significant fiction, including the novels Teen Ghumti, Narendra Dai, Sumnima, and Modiaain, which are considered important works in Nepali literature. He returned to Nepal in 1976 under a national reconciliation policy but remained a strong critic of authoritarian rule until his death in 1982.
Before Fame
B. P. Koirala was born in Varanasi in 1914 when both India and Nepal were under the pressure of colonial and autocratic rule. Coming from a politically aware family, he studied at institutions in Calcutta and Banaras and was part of the intellectual and activist scenes that were opposing British imperialism and feudal rule in South Asia. Influenced by figures like Mahatma Gandhi and socialist thinkers, Koirala embraced both democratic and socialist ideas.
He rose to prominence through organized resistance against Nepal's Rana regime, which had turned the monarchy into a figurehead and ruled the country as a hereditary oligarchy since 1846. Koirala got involved in underground political activities and helped lay the foundation for what would later become the Nepali Congress party. His willingness to face arrest and hardship for democratic change built his reputation as a leader long before he was elected to office.
Key Achievements
- Served as Nepal's first democratically elected Prime Minister following the Nepali Congress victory in the 1959 general elections
- Co-founded and built the Nepali Congress, Nepal's oldest democratic political party
- Played a central role in the 1950–1951 revolution that ended over a century of Rana autocratic rule in Nepal
- Authored major works of Nepali literature including the novels Sumnima, Teen Ghumti, Narendra Dai, and Modiaain
- Articulated and promoted the ideology of Democratic Socialism as a framework for Nepal's political and economic development
Did You Know?
- 01.Koirala was imprisoned for a total of approximately eight years across different periods of his life due to his political activities against authoritarian rule.
- 02.His novel Sumnima, drawing on themes from Kirat mythology and exploring questions of identity and tradition, is considered one of the most distinctive works in Nepali literature.
- 03.He was both an elected head of government and a published novelist, a combination that was exceptionally rare among South Asian leaders of his era.
- 04.After returning to Nepal in 1976 from years of exile in India, Koirala coined the phrase 'national reconciliation' to describe his approach to engaging with the monarchy while still pressing for democratic restoration.
- 05.Koirala's family became a political dynasty: his brothers Matrika Prasad and Girija Prasad both served as Prime Ministers, making the Koiralas one of the most influential political families in Nepali history.