The 111th birth anniversary of BP Koirala, the first elected Prime Minister of Nepal, is being celebrated by organising numerous events across Nepal today. He led the establishment of the Nepali National Congress in 1946 AD during his exile in India to end the then autocratic Rana regime. After the success of the 2007 revolution, BP became the home minister in the Rana-Congress government led by Mohan Shamsher. B P Koirala became the first elected Prime Minister after the Congress won a two-thirds majority in the 2015 general elections.
In 1960 AD, the popularly elected government was overthrown by the then King, putting B P Koirala and other leaders in Jail. Koirala was released from prison for medical treatment in 1968 and then lived in exile in India for eight years. He returned to Nepal with the policy of national unity and reconciliation in 1976 . His policy led to a referendum on the choice between multi-party system or reformed Panchayat system three years later. However, the democrats lost amidst allegations of rampant fraud by the then ruling side. He passed away on 1982 due to throat cancer.
Not only as a politician, B P Koirala was Nepali writer who penned more than 18 literary work, including novels like ‘Tin Ghumti’, ‘Modi Ain’, ‘Hitler and Jew’, and ‘Sumnima’. Similarly, he has two collections of stories ‘Shwet Bhairavi’ and ‘Doshi Chashma’.
The Sundarijal Prison, where the Prime Minister, Speaker of the Parliament and Ministers of the first elected government were imprisoned, is now serving as BP museum. The museum has various collections depicting the life and contributions of the late leader. On the occasion of BP Jayanti, the Nepali Congress hosted programs to commemorate the life and contributions of late BP Koirala.
Sweta Singh(Kathmandu)
