Sushil Prasad Koirala (Nepali: सुशीलप्रसाद कोइराला; 12 August 1939 – 9 February 2016) was a Nepalese politician and the Prime Minister of Nepal from 11 February 2014 to 10 October 2015. He was also President of the Nepali Congress from 2010 to 2016, having earlier served in various capacities in the party. He is also known as the "Father of Constitution" due to his major role in promulgation of The Constitution of Nepal.
Contents
Early life
Koirala was born to Bodh Prasad and Kumudini Koirala on 12 August 1939 in Biratnagar, the then second-largest city of Nepal. A member of the politically prominent Koirala family, he was the first cousin (his mother was the sister of Krishna Prasad Koirala's second wife) of former prime ministers Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala and Girija Prasad Koirala, as well as a distant relative of their elder half-brother Matrika Prasad Koirala, another former prime minister.
Political career
Koirala entered politics in 1954 inspired by the social-democratic ideals of the Nepali Congress. In 1958, he keenly participated in Bhadra Abagya Aandalon (Civil Disobedience Movement) launched by the Nepali Congress. In 1959, he actively involved himself in the party's objective of carrying out the democratic elections. The election saw Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala become the first elected prime minister of the country. However, King Mahendra planned and executed a coup in December 1960 and expelled the elected government led by B.P. Koirala. This resulted in the exile of several members of the Nepali Congress to India, which included Sushil Koirala. He remained in political exile in India for 16 years following the royal takeover of 1960. Koirala also spent three years in Indian prisons for his involvement in a plane hijacking in 1973. While in exile, Koirala was the editor of Tarun in Varanasi, the official party publication. He has been a member of the Central Working Committee of the party since 1979 and was appointed General Secretary of the party in 1996 and Vice President in 1998.