KATHMANDU: Nepal has entered uncharted political territory with the appointment of Sushila Karki as interim prime minister, the first woman to hold the country’s top executive post. Her rise comes nearly a decade after she made history as Nepal’s first female Chief Justice — and at a time of unprecedented public anger over corruption, political privilege and curbs on online expression.
Karki, 73, was proposed by Generation-Z protest leaders as a consensus figure to head a caretaker administration after Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli stepped down last week. The Nepal Army, which has assumed an unusually prominent role amid the crisis, facilitated her appointment following tense, closed-door negotiations at Singha Durbar, the government’s main administrative complex.
For supporters, Karki’s elevation marks a symbolic break from the entrenched male-dominated political order and a chance to inject credibility into Nepal’s battered institutions. For critics, it raises questions about whether a former chief justice should hold executive power, even temporarily.
From Biratnagar to the Supreme Court
Born in Biratnagar in 1952 to a politically conscious family with ties to the Koirala dynasty of the Nepali Congress, Karki grew up steeped in debates on democracy and governance. Her parents hoped she would study medicine, but she chose law — a male-dominated profession at the time — signalling an early commitment to justice and public service.
She earned a BA from Mahendra Morang Campus in 1972 and an MA in political science from Banaras Hindu University in 1975, where she met her future husband, democratic activist Durga Prasad Subedi. Returning to Nepal, she obtained a law degree from Tribhuvan University in 1978 and later taught law and political science at Mahendra Multiple Campus in Dharan between 1985 and 1989, gaining both academic and practical grounding.
Karki began practising law in 1978 and quickly built a reputation for meticulous preparation and fairness. She chaired the Bar Association at the Appellate Court in Biratnagar and was recognised as a senior advocate in 2007. In 2009 she was appointed an ad hoc Supreme Court judge, becoming permanent the following year. Her appointment as Nepal’s first female Chief Justice in July 2016 capped a steady ascent rooted in professional discipline.
A record of anti-corruption rulings
During her short but high-impact tenure as Chief Justice, Karki became known for uncompromising rulings that challenged powerful figures. She convicted J.P. Gupta, then minister of communications, and removed Lokman Singh Karki from the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority. Those decisions, praised by reformers and condemned by entrenched interests, reinforced the principle that no official was beyond accountability.
The backlash was swift. In 2017, the then ruling coalition of Nepali Congress and CPN-Maoist Centre filed an impeachment motion against her. She was briefly suspended until the Supreme Court intervened with an interim order invalidating the motion. Opposition parties, including the CPN-UML, publicly opposed the impeachment, seeing it as an attack on judicial independence. The episode cemented Karki’s reputation as a jurist willing to defy political pressure.
Her dissenting opinions also reflected a consistent emphasis on constitutional propriety. In 2013 she opposed the Supreme Court decision allowing then Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi to chair an interim government, arguing it violated the separation of powers — an irony not lost on observers now that she herself leads an interim administration.
Why Gen-Z chose Karki
Karki’s reputation for integrity helped her emerge as the preferred candidate of the Gen-Z protest movement. Organisers used online platforms to vote on potential interim leaders, considering names such as former electricity authority chief Kulman Ghising and Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah. Karki’s legal background and non-partisan image gave her an edge.
She inherits a nation in crisis. Government buildings, including Parliament and the presidential palace, have been damaged during demonstrations. Police morale is low and administrative capacity is weakened. The expectations placed on her by politically conscious youth are high: restore order, rebuild institutions and oversee credible elections while pursuing accountability for violence during protests.
Diplomacy under scrutiny
As interim leader, Karki must also manage Nepal’s delicate foreign relations, particularly with India. She has praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and emphasised the countries’ deep cultural and familial ties, while reassuring Indian citizens about their safety in Nepal. Yet in Kathmandu, positive references to India can provoke nationalist criticism. Analysts say Karki will need deft diplomacy to balance external relations with domestic sensitivities.
Her government is also expected to investigate long-standing corruption scandals dating back to the 1990s and oversee relief and recovery in regions hit by monsoon disasters — all while maintaining public trust in an atmosphere of volatility.
A test of principle in executive office
Supporters argue that Karki’s retirement from the judiciary and the extraordinary circumstances legitimise her temporary executive role. Critics question whether judicial independence can translate into effective executive decision-making. Every move she makes will be closely scrutinised as a measure of both her leadership and Nepal’s ability to stabilise itself.
For many Nepalis, Karki’s interim premiership is more than a symbolic gesture. It represents a generational shift and the possibility that principled leadership can guide the country through its most turbulent period in decades. Her journey — from a determined law student in Biratnagar to the pinnacle of the judiciary and now the head of government — mirrors Nepal’s struggle to consolidate democracy and demand accountability from its leaders.
Whether she succeeds or falters, Karki’s tenure will be a defining chapter in Nepal’s political history and a benchmark for future leaders. For a public weary of political privilege and institutional weakness, it is a moment of cautious hope.
