Pushpa Kamal Dahal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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पुष्पकमल दाहाल | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Dahal in 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leader of the Opposition | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 15 July 2024 – 12 September 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| President | Ram Chandra Paudel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | KP Sharma Oli Sushila Karki(interim) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Sher Bahadur Deuba | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 11 February 2014 – 11 October 2015 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| President | Ram Baran Yadav | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Sushil Koirala | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Ram Chandra Paudel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Sushil Koirala | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 25 May 2009 – 6 February 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| President | Ram Baran Yadav | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Madhav Kumar Nepal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Girija Prasad Koirala | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Ram Chandra Paudel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 33rd Prime Minister of Nepal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 26 December 2022 – 15 July 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| President | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Deputy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Sher Bahadur Deuba | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | KP Sharma Oli | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 4 August 2016 – 7 June 2017 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| President | Bidya Devi Bhandari | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Deputy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Khadga Prasad Oli | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Sher Bahadur Deuba | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 15 August 2008 – 25 May 2009 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| President | Ram Baran Yadav | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Deputy | Bamdev Gautam | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Girija Prasad Koirala | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Madhav Kumar Nepal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Ghanashyam Dahal (1954-12-11)11 December 1954 (age 70) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Nepali Communist Party | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other political affiliations |
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| Spouse | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 4, includingRenu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science,Tribhuvan University | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | cmprachanda | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Prachanda | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pushpa Kamal Dahal[b] (bornGhanashyam Dahal; 11 December 1954), also known asPrachanda,[c] is a Nepalese politician. He has been prime minister of Nepal three times: from 2008 to 2009, from 2016 to 2017, and again from December 2022 until July 2024.[1][2] His third term ended on 12 July 2024 after he lost a vote of confidence in parliament. He was then replaced byKhadga Prasad Sharma Oli.[3] After leaving office, Dahal became theLeader of the Opposition on 15 July 2024, remaining in that position until September 2025.[4]
Having been drawn to left-wing politics after seeing severe poverty during his youth, Dahal joined theCommunist Party of Nepal (Fourth Convention) in 1981, and later became general secretary of theCommunist Party of Nepal (Mashal) in 1989.[5][6][7] This party later became theCommunist Party of Nepal (Maoist). Dahal was the leader of the CPN (M) during thecountry's civil war andsubsequent peace process and the 1st Nepalese constituent assembly. In the2008 elections, CPN(M) emerged as the largest party, and Dahal became prime minister in August of that year.[8] He resigned from the post on 4 May 2009, after his attempt to sack the thenarmy chief,Rookmangud Katawal, was opposed by thenPresidentRam Baran Yadav.[9] Dahal was sworn in as prime minister for a second time in 2016, as per an agreement to form a rotational government with theNepali Congress, and resigned on 24 May 2017 to make way for Congress'Sher Bahadur Deuba.[10] Following the2022 general election, Dahal was sworn in as prime minister again in December 2022, with support from a coalition of parties includingCPN (UML),Rastriya Swatantra Party andRastriya Prajatantra Party.[11] Dahal remained in power for 19 months, changing alliances between the UML and Congress three times, before he was ousted by a failed motion of confidence in the parliament on 12 July 2024.[12]
He was born Ghanashyam Dahal on 11 December 1954 in Lewade,Dhikur Pokhari, aVDC 20 km north fromPokhara, to Muktiram and Bhawani, aBrahmin Hindu family.[13][14] He later changed his name during amatriculation examination to Pushpa Kamal (meaning:Lotus Flower).[15][16][17] At the age of eight, his family migrated to theTerai, a fertile lowland region in southernNepal, and settled inChitwan District.[14] In the 1950s, his father Muktiram moved to Indian state ofAssam, where he worked as a firewood collector, and returned home in 1961.[14] In 1971, Pushpa Kamal Dahal moved toKathmandu for his studies, and was enrolled inPatan Multiple Campus for two years.[14] He moved back to Chitwan and received a diploma of science in agriculture fromInstitute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS) inRampur, Chitwan.[18][5] After completing studies and failing to find jobs in bureaucracy, Dahal became a schoolteacher in a village, where he worked until 1979. He was also a home teacher at the same village.[14]
On 4 February 1996,Baburam Bhattarai gave the government, led byNepali Congress Prime MinisterSher Bahadur Deuba, alist of 40 demands, threatening civil war if they were not met.[19] The demands related to "nationalism, democracy, and livelihood" and included such line items as the "domination of foreign capital in Nepali industries, business and finance should be stopped", and "discriminatory treaties, including the1950 Nepal-India Treaty, should be abrogated", and "land under the control of the feudal system should be confiscated and distributed to the landless and the homeless."[19][20] After that, and until 26 April 2006, Dahal directed the military efforts of theCPN (Maoist Centre) towards establishing areas of control, particularly in the mountainous regions and in western Nepal.[21] The 40 demands were whittled down to 24 in subsequent political negotiations.[21]
In late 2004 or early 2005, relations between Dahal and Baburam Bhattarai soured.[22] This was reportedly due to disagreement on power-sharing inside the party. Bhattarai was unhappy with the consolidation of power under Dahal.[23] At one point, Dahal expelled Bhattarai from the party, though he was later reinstated.[23] They later reconciled at least some of their differences.[24][25] On 22 November 2005, Dahal and theSeven Party Alliance released a 'twelve-point agreement' that expressed areas of agreement between the CPN(M) and the parties that had won a large majority in the last parliamentary election in 1999.[26] Among other points, this document stated that the dictatorial monarchy ofKing Gyanendra was the chief impediment to progress in Nepal.[26] It claimed further that theMaoists were committed to human rights andpress freedoms and amulti-party system of government.[26] It pledged self-criticism and the intention of the Maoists and the Seven Parties to not repeat past mistakes.[26]
On 26 April 2006,CPN (Maoist Centre) announced aceasefire with a stated duration of 90 days.[27] The move followed weeks of massive protests—theApril 2006 Nepalese general strike— inKathmandu and elsewhere that had forcedKing Gyanendra to give up the personal dictatorship he had established on 1 February 2005, and restore the parliament that had been dissolved in May 2002.[27] A new government was then established by the Seven-Party Alliance. The parliament and the new government supported the ceasefire and started negotiations with the Maoists on the basis of the twelve-point agreement. The two sides agreed that a new constituent assembly would be elected to write a new constitution and decide the fate of the monarchy. The Maoists wanted this process to end with Nepal becoming declared as a republic.[27]
Dahal met for talks with Prime MinisterGirija Prasad Koirala on 16 June 2006, which was thought to be his first visit to the capital Kathmandu in more than a decade.[28][29] This meeting resulted in theComprehensive Peace Accord to dissolve parliament, incorporate the CPN(M) into a new interim government, draft a new constitution, and disband the CPN(M)'s "people's governments" operating in rural Nepal. The two sides also agreed to disarm at a later date, under international supervision.[30] On 18 September 2007, the CPN(M) left the coalition government ahead of theConstituent Assembly election, demanding the declaration of a republic by parliament, and a system ofproportional representation in the election. The CPN(M) rejoined the government on 30 December 2007, after an agreement to abolish the monarchy following the election, and to have a system of partial proportional representation in the election.[31] Following power-sharing discussions that lasted several months, Dahal was elected as prime minister by the Constituent Assembly on 15 August 2008, and he was sworn in as prime minister on 18 August 2008.[32]
The decade-long war ultimately led the Maoists to Nepal's parliament. After winning a remarkable majority in the Constitutional Assembly elections, Dahal was nominated for the Prime Ministership by the party.[33] In the April 2008 Constituent Assembly election, he was elected from Kathmandu constituency-10, winning by a large margin, and receiving nearly twice as many votes as his nearest rival, the candidate of theNepali Congress. He also won overwhelmingly in Rolpa constituency-2, receiving 34,230 votes against 6,029 for Shanta Kumar Oli of theCommunist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist), CPN(UML).[34] With the CPN(M) appearing to have won the election, Dahal pledged that the party would work together with other parties in crafting the new constitution, and he assured the international community, particularly India and China, that the party wanted good relations and co-operation. He also said that the party had expressed its commitment to multi-party democracy through the election.[35]
In August 2016 Pushpa Kamal Dahal was elected for a second stint as Prime Minister of Nepal.[36] Dahal became the 24th prime minister since Nepal's adoption of multi-party democracy in 1990 and the eighth since theabolition of the monarchy in 2008.[37] He resigned from the post of prime minister on 24 May 2017 and was succeeded bySher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepali Congress in June.[38][39]
Pushpa Kamal Dahal was appointedprime minister for the third time on 25 December 2022, following the2022 Nepalese general election.[40] He won the vote of confidence in the House on 10 January 2023 after 268 out of the present 270 members voted in favor of him.[41]
Following Dahal's support for the candidature ofRam Chandra Poudel in thepresidential election, the CPN (UML) withdrew its support from the government, and Dahal again joined hands with the Congress to revive the pre-election alliance.[42]
Dahal condemned the actions ofHamas during theGaza war,[43] but also expressed support forPalestine and spoke in favor of aceasefire, saying "we support the oppressed, those who deserve independence. We support Palestine".[44]
On 4 March 2024, Dahal ended his coalition with the Nepali Congress and formed a new coalition with the CPN (UML) and other smaller parties.[45] On 3 July however, the CPN (UML) left its coalition with Dahal and formed a coalition instead with the Nepali Congress.[46] On 12 July, Dahal lost avote of confidence in the House after 194 out of the present 258 members voted against his favour leading to the end of his third tenure as prime minister.[47][48]
In 1969, Dahal married Sita Poudel (5 July 1954 – 12 July 2023)[49][50] when he was fifteen.[14] They had three daughters (includingRenu Dahal) and a son.[14]
In keeping with Marxist ideology, Dahal is anatheist, having stopped practicing Hinduism in his teenage years.[51]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Leader of theCommunist Party-Mashal 1986–1991 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Leader of theCommunist Party-Maoist Centre 1994–present | Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Nepal 2008–2009 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Nepal 2016–2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of Nepal 2022–2024 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
