Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala

The Story

Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala, widely known as B.P. Koirala, is remembered as the first democratically elected Prime Minister of Nepal and one of the principal architects of the country’s modern democratic movement. Born in Varanasi in 1914 to a politically active family that had taken refuge in India due to its opposition to the Rana regime, he grew up in an environment where discussions of liberty, nationalism, and social justice were part of everyday life. As a young man, he studied in India and became involved in both Indian and Nepali political circles, participating in anti‑colonial activism and absorbing the ideas of social democracy and socialism that were circulating among regional leaders. These early experiences helped shape his conviction that Nepal needed not only political freedom but also deep social and economic reforms. Koirala emerged as a central figure in the anti‑Rana struggle in the 1940s, organizing labour strikes such as the 1947 Biratnagar Jute Mill strike and building underground networks to challenge the century‑old oligarchy. In 1947 he played a key role in the formation of the Nepali National Congress, which later merged with another group to become the Nepali Congress, a party that would lead the revolution against Rana rule. From exile in India, Koirala and his colleagues coordinated political agitation, armed resistance, and diplomatic efforts, working closely with King Tribhuvan who had also turned against the Ranas. The 1950–51 movement, to which Koirala devoted his organizational skills and personal courage, succeeded in ending the 104‑year Rana autocracy and opening the way to constitutional experiments and party politics in Nepal. After the overthrow of the Ranas, Koirala briefly served as Home Minister in the Rana–Congress coalition government formed in 1951, where he began to translate his democratic ideas into administrative practice. He consistently argued that democracy required not only elections but also civil liberties, rule of law, and accountable institutions, and he pressed for a fully elected constituent assembly and parliamentary system. When Nepal finally held its first general election under a new constitution in 1959, the Nepali Congress won a strong majority and Koirala became Prime Minister, heading the country’s first democratic government. His administration attempted to pursue land reform, expand education and healthcare, and lay the foundations for a developmental state guided by the principles of democratic socialism, although implementation was constrained by limited resources and entrenched social interests. Koirala’s core political philosophy was democratic socialism, which he defined as the synthesis of political freedom and economic equality in a poor, agrarian country like Nepal. He argued that formal rights alone could not satisfy people whose lives were marked by poverty, caste discrimination, and lack of opportunity, and he insisted that the state had a responsibility to undertake redistributive reforms while protecting pluralism and civil liberties. In office, he sought to abolish feudal land relations, curb the power of hereditary elites, and extend the reach of the state into rural development, reflecting his belief that democracy must have a material base to endure. At the same time, he supported a constitutional monarchy, hoping to reconcile the institution of kingship with popular sovereignty and parliamentary accountability rather than destroy it outright. His tenure as Prime Minister was abruptly cut short on 15 December 1960, when King Mahendra dismissed the elected government, dissolved parliament, and arrested Koirala along with many of his colleagues, introducing the partyless Panchayat system. Koirala spent much of the subsequent decade in prison, including long periods of solitary confinement, and his health deteriorated as a result, yet he refused to formally renounce his political beliefs. International pressure and domestic considerations eventually led to his release and exile; from abroad he continued to criticize the Panchayat regime and call for the restoration of multiparty democracy. When he returned to Nepal in the late 1970s, despite the risk of re‑arrest, he framed his decision as a moral duty to struggle inside the country rather than from afar, reinforcing his image as a leader who accepted personal sacrifice for political principle. Koirala’s later years were marked by both political engagement and intellectual production, even as his health worsened. He participated in debates around the 1980 national referendum on the political system, where he campaigned for multiparty democracy although the reformed Panchayat option narrowly prevailed. In parallel, he wrote extensively: his novels such as "Tin Ghumti," "Modiain," and "Sumnima" explored existential themes, gender relations, and social change, while his political writings and memoirs reflected on freedom, responsibility, and the moral burdens of leadership. This dual legacy as both politician and writer has made him a unique figure in Nepali public life, bridging activism, governance, and literature. B.P. Koirala died in Kathmandu on 21 July 1982, but his ideas continued to influence the democratic movements that eventually brought down the Panchayat system in 1990. Many political actors across party lines still invoke his commitment to civil liberties, social justice, and national independence, although interpretations of his legacy vary depending on contemporary ideological debates. In Nepali political history, he is widely regarded as a foundational leader whose vision of democratic socialism remains a reference point in discussions about how to combine political freedom with economic transformation. His life story, marked by imprisonment, exile, electoral victory, and literary creativity, has come to symbolize the long and unfinished struggle for a more just and democratic Nepal.