Nepal’s three-time premier of monarchy era Kirti Nidhi Bista dies at 90
A politician who was entrusted with heading the government by two generations of the country’s former monarchs, died after a prolonged battle with cancer
Kirti Nidhi Bista, a three-time former prime minister during Nepal’s monarchy era, died in Kathmandu on Saturday, state television reported. He was 90.
Bista, a politician who was entrusted with heading the government by two generations of Nepal’s former monarchs, died after a prolonged battle with cancer.
He stepped down from politics after Nepal became a multi-party democracy and constitutional monarchy in 1990.
However, after the bloodless coup staged by King Gyanendra in 2005, he was appointed a vice-chairman of the Council of Ministers chaired by Gyanendra.
Gyanendra’s direct rule lasted until April 2006, when popular protests forced him to relinquish executive authority. Nepal abolished the monarchy two years later as part of a peace process with former Maoist rebels who staged an armed insurgency for 10 years until 2006, costing the lives of over 17,000 people.
In March 2016, Bista told Kyodo News in a phone interview that he had conquered cancer and was leading a quiet life “in fine health except for whatever comes with old age”.