The Nepali Congress (NC; ), colloquially known as the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a social democratic political party in Nepal. With 870,106 members as of the party's 14th general convention in December 2021, it stands as largest party by membership in Nepal. In June 2023, the party started online membership since the emergence of youth leaders in vital posts to attract youths to the party. The party remained the only among older parties to complete generation transition in leadership electing Gagan Thapa as party president. The party had won 38 seats in the 2026 general election and remains as the largest parliamentary opposition group in the House of Representatives.
There have been seven Nepali Congress prime ministers and the party has led the government fourteen times. Matrika Prasad Koirala, a founding member of the party was appointed as the first commoner prime minister following the end of the Rana regime in 1951. Subarna Shumsher Rana, another founding member of the party was appointed prime minister in 1958. Congress is the only party in Nepal to have been elected with a majority, with the party forming majority governments in 1959, 1991 and 1999 under B.P. Koirala, Girija Prasad Koirala and K.P. Bhattarai respectively with B.P. Koirala becoming the first elected prime minister of the country. The party also formed coalition governments in 1995 and 1998 with Girija Prasad Koirala and Sher Bahadur Deuba as prime ministers. The party emerged as the largest party following the 2013 Constituent Assembly elections and led a coalition government under Sushil Koirala. After the promulgation of the constitution in 2015, the party led coalition governments under Deuba in 2017 and 2021.
The party was formed in 1950 by the merger of the Nepali National Congress and the Nepal Democratic Congress along democratic socialist lines. NC prime ministers led four governments between the fall of the Rana dynasty and the start of the Panchayat era, including the first democratically elected government of Nepal, after the 1959 general election.
Around the same time, Nepalese located in Calcutta formed another organization by the name All Indian Nepali Gorkha Congress () whose chairman was Dharma Narayan Pradhan. Koirala travelled extensively to places such as Benaras, Calcutta, Darjeeling, Assam, Bhagsu, and Dehradun, and established contact with the Nepalese there. He met with Ganesh Man Singh during the same period. Nepalese representatives from different areas of Nepal and India organized one session in Calcutta. Koirala, Dilli Raman Regmi, Dharma Narayan Pradhan, and Dhan Man Singh Pariyar were present. In the same session, dropping Akhil Bharatiya from its name, the organization was named Nepali National Congress. Tanka Prasad Acharya, who was facing a life-sentence in Kathmandu, was made its chairman. The flag was square-shaped with white, blue, and red colors in succession, with the moon and the sun in its center. The party also called for an armed revolution against the Rana regime.
During the Bairgania Conference in Bairgania, Bihar, on 27 September 1950 the Nepali Congress announced an armed revolution against the Rana regime. The president of the party also announced the liquidation of operations in India and declared that the party would operate only inside Nepal. The liberation army was able to control most of the eastern hills of Nepal and the town of Tansen in Palpa. After pressure by the Indian government and the mass movement by the Nepali Congress and other political parties, the Rana government finally submitted to their demands and King Tribhuvan returned to the throne, replacing King Gyanendra, who had been crowned king after King Tribhuvan left for India.
thumb|200x200px|Nepali Congress leaders meeting [[King Tribhuvan]]
Transitional government, 1951–1959
After the fall of the Rana government, the party joined a government under Mohan SJB Rana with B.P. Koirala, Subarna Shamsher Rana, Ganesh Man Singh, Bhadrakali Mishra and Bharat Mani Sharma serving as ministers. The Rana–Congress government was dissolved after ten months. Matrika Prasdad Koirala was appointed as prime minister in November 1951 becoming the first commoner to assume the role.
The party held its fifth general convention in Janakpurdham in May 1952. B.P. Koirala was elected as party president, and Dhanman Singh Pariyar and Rajeshwar Prasad Upadhyaya were elected as general secretaries. Krishna Prasad Bhattarai from the party was also elected as the first speaker of the parliament.
In May 1960, the party held its sevent general convetion. B.P. Koirala was again elected as party president, deafeating his challenger Bhudev Rai. Shreebhadra Sharma and Tripurbarsingh Pradhan were elected as sgeneral secretaries.
During the 1994 general election, the Nepali Congress lost its majority to Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist). The CPN (UML) lacked a majority and formed a minority government. After 46 parliamentarians from the CPN (UML) quit to form the Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist–Leninist), the Nepali Congress formed their own government with the Rastriya Prajatantra Party and Nepal Sadbhawana Party. After CPN (UML) offered Lokendra Bahadur Chand the position of prime minister, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party led a government with the CPN (UML). Internal problems within the Rastriya Prajatantra Party caused one faction led by Surya Bahadur Thapa to lead a government with Nepali Congress and Nepal Sadbhawana Party. following a decision by the Election Commission that the Koirala faction held ownership of the name Nepali Congress, taking 37 central committee members and 40 of the party's lower house representatives with him. Girija Prasad Koirala remained president of the newly unified party. The party placed second with 110 out of 575 elected seats in the Constituent Assembly election, winning only half as many seats as CPN-M.
thumb|[[Sushil Koirala, former party president and Prime Minister of Nepal, also known as Father of Constitution in Nepal]]
After the Constituent Assembly of Nepal was dissolved by Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai after failure to draft a new constitution before the deadline. In the resulting 2013 Constituent Assembly election, the party emerged as the largest party winning 196 of the 575 elected seats. Along with CPN (UML), under the leadership of Sushil Koirala, they formed a new coalition government. The new Constitution of Nepal was promulgated under his leadership on 20 September 2015.
Federal Nepal, 2015–2025
thumb|305x305px|A map showing the vote-share won by the Nepali Congress in the [[2017 Nepalese provincial elections|2017 provincial elections]]
Sushil Koirala resigned as prime minister on 10 October 2015 after losing support from CPN (UML). Nepali Congress joined the government again in August 2016 under the leadership of Bimalendra Nidhi, after backing Pushpa Kamal Dahal to become prime minister. According to their agreement, Dahal resigned on 24 May 2017 paving the way for Deuba to become prime minister for a fourth time on 6 June 2017. Nepali Congress won 11,456 seats including 266 mayoral or chairman positions. The party also won mayor posts in Lalitpur and Biratnagar. Ahead of the 2017 general and provincial elections, Nepal Loktantrik Forum led by former Nepali Congress leader, Bijay Kumar Gachhadar merged into the party. Similarly, a group from Federal Socialist Forum, Nepal led by MP Abhishek Pratap Shah, a group from CPN (UML) led by MP Mohar Singh Rathore and Rabin Chaudhary, a goroup from Rastriya Janata Party Nepal led by MP Jangi Lal Ray, a group from CPN (Maoist Centre) led by former Minister and MP Sambhu Lal Shrestha joined the party ahead of the 2017 election.
2018–2022: 1st Federal Parliament
The party won 63 seats to the House of Representatives becoming the second largest party. The party could win only 23 seats under first past the post and many influential leaders including Ram Chandra Poudel, Ram Saran Mahat, Bimalendra Nidhi, Krishna Prasad Sitaula, and Arjun Narasingha K.C. lost in their constituencies. The party won 113 seats in provincial assemblies and became the largest opposition in six out of seven provinces. Following the 2018 National Assembly election, Deuba resigned as prime minister. Deuba was challenged for the leadership of the parliamentary party by Prakash Man Singh following a disappointing performance in the electionb but defeated his opponent 44–19.
Nepali Congress remained as the main opposition party until a split in the ruling Nepal Communist Party in 2021. The split occurred following an attempt to dissolve the House of Representatives. The party opposed the move and the decision was scrapped by the Supreme Court. Another attempt to dissolve the House of Representatives was quashed again by the Supreme Court and Nepali Congress president Sher Bahadur Deuba was appointed prime minister with the support of CPN (Maoist Centre) and CPN (Unified Socialist). The party also joined the provincial governments of Karnali, Province 2, Gandaki and Lumbini. The party headed governments in Gandaki and Karnali during this time.
The party held its 14th general convention from 13 to 15 December 2021. The party announced an active membership of 850,000 members and Sher Bahadur Deuba was re-elected as party president in the second round. The party elected Purna Bahadur Khadka and Dhanraj Gurung vice-presidents of the party, while Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma were elected as general secretaries.
2022–2025: 2nd Federal Parliament
The party contested the 2022 elections with an alliance with their coalition partners CPN (Maoist Centre), CPN (Unified Socialist) and other smaller leftist parties. In the 2022 local elections, the party won executive head positions in 329 local units including in the metropolitan cities of Lalitpur and Biratnagar. In the general elections that followed, the party won a plurality of seats in the House of Representatives and in provincial assemblies of Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali and Sudurpaschim.
The resulting government saw Congress in the opposition again following a breakdown in the alliance. Another alliance change saw Congress joining the coalition government of CPN (Maoist Centre) in March 2023 before again joining the opposition bench in March 2024. The party forged a deal with CPN (UML) in July 2024 to form a new coalition government under CPN (UML).
The coalition government introduced a mandate to shut down social media for failing to register with the government which served as the trigger for the 2025 Gen Z protests. Following the death of 19 protestors as a result of the use of live ammunition, home minister Ramesh Lekhak from the party resigned, other ministers also resigned the next morning, but protestors vandalized the party headquarters and other local offices of the party across the country. Party president Sher Bahadur Deuba was assaulted at his residence along with his wife and foreign minister Arzu Rana Deuba. The houses of other leaders of the party were also vandalized and set ablaze. The government also resigned following the protests.
Ideology
thumb|A Nepali Congress manifesto outlining its 2022 ideology in [[Nepali language|Nepali.]]
The party was founded on the principle of democracy and socialism. In 1956, the party adopted democratic socialism as its ideology for socioeconomic transformation. After the end of the panchayat, subsequent governments under Nepali Congress launched pro-privatisation and liberalisation policies in the 1990s.
Organization
thumb|250x250px|Party central office
Central Organization
The National Convention remains the supreme body of Nepali Congress and it is organized every four years by the party's Central Committee. The national convention elects the party portfolios including the party chair, two deputy chairs, two general secretaries each along with eight deputy general secretaries from different cluster. It also elects central committee members. The convention also discusses and approves political documents, organizational proposals and amendments to the party constitution. The party has also provision for Central Working committee.
Provincial and local organization
Party committees exist at the provincial, district, constituency, local and ward level. All the level of committee holds a convention every four years. The party has distributed a number of rights at different levels per the current Constitution of Nepal. Nepali Congress stands as the only party to have conducted conventions at all levels since the promulgation of current constitution of Nepal. The convention elects the leadership and members of the committee which is the supreme decision-making body in between conventions.
|2 August 2023
|
| rowspan="3" |2nd Assembly
|Thapa I
| rowspan="2" |List MP
|-
|2 August 2023
|8 September 2023
|
|Thapa II
|-
|2
|Kedar Karki
|
|14 October 2023
|9 May 2024
|
|Karki
|Morang 6 (B)
|}
Madhesh Province
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |No.
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Chief Minister
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Portrait
! colspan="3" style="background-color:; color:white" |Terms in Office
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Legislature
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Cabinet
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Constituency
|-
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Start
! style="background-color:; color:white" |End
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Tenure
|-
|1
|Krishna Prasad Yadav
|
|5 December 2025
|Incumbent
|
|2nd Assembly
|Yadav
|Rautahat 1(B)
|}
Bagmati Province
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |No.
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Chief Minister
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Portrait
! colspan="3" style="background-color:; color:white" |Terms in Office
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Legislature
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Cabinet
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Constituency
|-
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Start
! style="background-color:; color:white" |End
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Tenure
|-
|1
|Bahadur Singh Lama
|
|24 July 2024
|4 August 2025
|
|2nd Assembly
|Lama
|Nuwakot 2(B)
|-
|2
|Indra Bahadur Baniya
|
|5 August 2025
|Incumbent
|
|2nd Assembly
|Baniya
|Makwanpur 2 (B)
|}
Gandaki Province
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |No.
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Chief Minister
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Portrait
! colspan="3" style="background-color:; color:white" |Terms in Office
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Legislature
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Cabinet
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Constituency
|-
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Start
! style="background-color:; color:white" |End
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Tenure
|-
|1
|Krishna Chandra Nepali
|
|12 June 2021
|9 January 2023
|
|1st Assembly
|Nepali
|Nawalparasi East 1(A)
|-
| rowspan="2" |2
| rowspan="2" |Surendra Raj Pandey
| rowspan="2" |
|27 April 2023
|4 April 2024
|
| rowspan="2" |2nd Assembly
|Pandey I
| rowspan="2" |Gorkha 2(B)
|-
|29 May 2024
|Incumbent
|
|Pandey II
|}
Lumbini Province
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |No.
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Chief Minister
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Portrait
! colspan="3" style="background-color:; color:white" |Terms in Office
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Legislature
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Cabinet
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Constituency
|-
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Start
! style="background-color:; color:white" |End
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Tenure
|-
|1
|Dilli Bahadur Chaudhary
|
|27 April 2023
|4 April 2024
|
|1st Assembly
|Chaudhary
|Dang 3(A)
|}
Karnali Province
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |No.
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Chief Minister
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Portrait
! colspan="3" style="background-color:; color:white" |Terms in Office
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Legislature
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Cabinet
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Constituency
|-
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Start
! style="background-color:; color:white" |End
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Tenure
|-
|1
|Jeevan Bahadur Shahi
|
|2 November 2021
|12 January 2023
|
|1st Assembly
|Shahi
|Humla 1(B)
|}
Sudurpashchim Province
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |No.
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Chief Minister
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Portrait
! colspan="3" style="background-color:; color:white" |Terms in Office
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Legislature
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Cabinet
! rowspan="2" style="background-color:; color:white" |Constituency
|-
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Start
! style="background-color:; color:white" |End
! style="background-color:; color:white" |Tenure
|-
| rowspan="2" |1
| rowspan="2" |Kamal Bahadur Shah
| rowspan="2" |
|12 February 2023
|4 April 2024
|
| rowspan="2" |2nd Assembly
|Shah I
| rowspan="2" |Kailali 2(A)
|-
|5 August 2024
|Incumbent
|
|Shah II
|}
Sister organizations
According to the website of Nepali Congress, the following are its sister organizations.
- Nepal Student Union (नेपाल विद्यार्थी संघ)
- Nepal Tarun Dal (नेपाल तरुण दल)
- Nepal Democratic Fighter Society (नेपाल प्रजातान्त्रिक सेनानी समाज)
- Nepal Farmers Association (नेपाल किसान संघ)
- Nepal Adivasi Janajati Sangh (नेपाल आदिवासी जनजाति संघ)
- National Democratic Handicapped Association (राष्ट्रिय प्रजातान्त्रिक अपाङ्ग संघ)
- Nepal Tamang Association (नेपाल तामाङ संघ)
- Nepal Thakur Society (नेपाल ठाकुर समाज)
- Nepal Woman Association (नेपाल महिला संघ)
- Nepal Dalit Sangh (नेपाल दलित संघ)
- Nepal Ex Army Association (नेपाल भूतपूर्व सैनिक संघ)
- Nepal Press Union (नेपाल प्रेस युनियन)
- Nepal Civil Service Employees' Union (नेपाल निजामती कर्मचारी युनियन)
- Nepal Cultural Association (नेपाल सांस्कृतिक संघ)
- Nepal Teachers Association (नेपाल शिक्षक संघ)
- Nepal Trade Union Congress (नेपाल ट्रेड युनियन कांग्रेस)
- Nepal Prajatantra Senani Sangh (नेपाल प्रजातान्त्रिक सेनानी संघ)
- Nepal Indigenous Nationality Association (नेपाल आदिवासी जनजाती संघ )
See also
- Biratnagar jute mill strike
- Congress Mukti Sena
- 15th general convention of Nepali Congress
References
External links
- Official website
- Info on the party from FES