Sushila Karki
Who was Sushila Karki?
Former Chief Justice of Nepal's Supreme Court who became interim Prime Minister in January 2025. She is the first woman to hold the position of Chief Justice in Nepal's history.
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Sushila Karki (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Sushila Karki was born on June 7, 1952, in Biratnagar, a major industrial city in the Koshi Province of eastern Nepal. She studied at Mahendra Morang Adarsh Multiple Campus, affiliated with Tribhuvan University, and then continued her legal studies at Banaras Hindu University in India, a top institution in the region. This academic background set her up for a long and impactful career in Nepal's judicial and executive branches.
Karki gained recognition through her longstanding work in Nepal's legal system, known for her integrity and independence during a time when the judiciary often faced political pressure. Her rise through Nepal's courts showcased her legal skills and her commitment to staying impartial in a politically charged atmosphere. She was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nepal in 2016 and served until 2017. She was the first woman in Nepal to hold this position, a milestone that attracted significant national and international attention.
After her time as Chief Justice, Karki stayed active in Nepalese public life. Her reputation for independence made her a trusted figure among political groups, even as the country went through frequent government changes. This reputation proved vital in 2025, when youth-led protests erupted across Nepal in September, demanding accountability and political reform. The protests led to the resignation of the prime minister, creating a need for a temporary executive.
Amid the political crisis, Karki was appointed interim Prime Minister of Nepal in 2025, a role she filled until 2026. Her appointment was widely viewed as a stabilizing step due to her judicial background and her perceived distance from the infighting typical in Nepalese party politics. With this role, she became the first woman to serve as Prime Minister of Nepal, adding another historic achievement to her career. Her focus was on managing the transition period and ensuring the conditions necessary for a return to elected governance.
Karki's career stands out as one of the most significant in modern Nepalese public life, connecting the judiciary and executive during crucial moments in the country's democratization. Her appointments to two of the highest offices, nearly a decade apart, highlight how her personal credibility rose above the chaos that often marked Nepal's political scene after the monarchy.
Before Fame
Sushila Karki grew up in Biratnagar during a time of major political changes in Nepal, moving from the Rana oligarchy to a constitutional monarchy and eventually adopting a multiparty democracy. Her early years matched with Nepal's slow growth in access to higher education, which she pursued at a time when it wasn't common for women of her generation. She attended Mahendra Morang Adarsh Multiple Campus and then went to India to study law at Banaras Hindu University. This choice showed she was serious about her career when few women were in Nepal's legal profession.
Her legal career started during Nepal's complex political changes, including the start of multiparty democracy in 1990 and the Maoist insurgency in 1996. These times required legal professionals to keep their credibility across changing power structures. Karki's ability to do this set the stage for her rise to the Supreme Court and, eventually, her role as Chief Justice.
Key Achievements
- First woman to serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nepal, appointed in 2016
- First woman to serve as Prime Minister of Nepal, appointed as interim prime minister in 2025
- Maintained judicial independence during a politically volatile period in Nepal's post-monarchy transition
- Oversaw a constitutional caretaker government following the youth protests of September 2025
- Pioneered representation for women at the apex of both Nepal's judicial and executive branches of government
Did You Know?
- 01.Karki is the only person in Nepal's history to have served as both Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and as Prime Minister.
- 02.She studied law at Banaras Hindu University in India, one of Asia's oldest universities, founded in 1916.
- 03.Her appointment as interim Prime Minister in 2025 came directly as a result of youth-led street protests, making her ascent to the executive unusually tied to civil society pressure rather than parliamentary coalition-building.
- 04.She was born in Biratnagar, the same city that has historically been a center of Nepal's trade union and labor movements due to its industrial character.
- 05.Karki served as Chief Justice for approximately one year, from 2016 to 2017, before her interim prime ministerial term nearly a decade later in 2025.