Koirala's Legacy in the parliament

Although it has been an extreme challenge to keep up with what is happening with Nepal’s government, living miles away from Nepal, the name ‘Koirala’ always seems to be prevalent and familiar.  Last month, it was no surprise to see Sushil Koirala elected as the new Prime Minister of Nepal, after the death of Girija Prasad Koirala in 2010. 

As the Prime Minister in Nepal changes almost every year, and sometimes the former PMs get elected again, it feels like the same group of competitors are playing musical chair in the race to be the political leader of the country. However, in the race to grab the ''chair'', the Koiralas seem to skilfully be hovering around Singha Durbar – Nepal’s parliament house, in one way or the other. Looking back in history, the Koiralas have enjoyed a longer tenure of being the Prime Ministers of Nepal compared to other Prime Ministers during their time.

From left to right -Matrika Prasad Koilara, Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala, Girija Prasad Koirala and Sushil Koirala

All of the Koiralas, who have been the PMs of Nepal, have left behind intriguing footprints. They all spent some time of their life in India as they were exiled by the monarch of Nepal. It was over 50 years ago, when the Koiralas debuted in Nepal’s politics. Matrika Prasad Koirala was the first one to break into this field at a challenging time during the Rana regime. He stunned the Rana regime by being the first commoner to be nominated as the PM of Nepal by the late King Tribhuwan. This was soon followed by his brother, Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala who became the first democratically elected leader. For our generation, Girija Prasad Koirala is a household name and needs no introduction. He has successfully won the maximum number of votes to be elected as PM four times.
 

Sushil Koirala, who is the 4^th Koirala to take over the legacy in Nepal’s government, has been a part of Nepali Congress since 1952. He is leading the nation at the age of seventy four, which is normally when people would happily retire if given the chance. He is known to be a believer of simple living and never got married. Do the Nepali citizens believe that a 74 year old political leader who lives with a motto of ‘simple living’ be successful in writing the constitution of Nepal? Time will tell.