Jhala Nath Khanal
Nepalese politician (born 1950)
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Jhala Nath Khanal (Nepali: झलनाथ खनाल, [d͡zʱʌlʌˈnatʰ ˈkʰʌnal] ⓘ; born 20 May 1950) is a Nepalese politician who was the 35th Prime Minister of Nepal from February 2011 to August 2011. He was previously the chairman of the CPN (UML) and Leader of the Constituent Assembly Parliamentary Party of the CPN (UML).[1][2]
Jhala Nath Khanal | |
|---|---|
झलनाथ खनाल | |
Khanal in 2011 | |
| Prime Minister of Nepal | |
| In office 6 February 2011 – 29 August 2011 | |
| President | Ram Baran Yadav |
| Preceded by | Madhav Kumar Nepal |
| Succeeded by | Baburam Bhattarai |
| Chairman of CPN (UML) | |
| In office 16 February 2009 – 15 July 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Man Mohan Adhikari (1999)[a] |
| Succeeded by | K. P. Sharma Oli |
| General Secretary of CPN (UML) | |
| In office 15 May 2008 – 16 February 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Madhav Kumar Nepal |
| Succeeded by | Ishwar Pokhrel[b] |
| Minister for Information and Communication | |
| In office 25 March 1997 – 6 October 1997 | |
| Prime Minister | Lokendra Bahadur Chand |
| Preceded by | Chiranjibi Wagle |
| Succeeded by | Sarbendra Nath Shukla |
| Member of the House of Representatives | |
| In office 4 March 2018 – 18 September 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Himself (as Member of the Constituent Assembly) |
| Succeeded by | Mahesh Basnet |
| Constituency | Ilam 1 |
| In office 20 June 1991 – 15 January 1999 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency created |
| Succeeded by | Benup Raj Prasai |
| Constituency | Ilam 1 |
| Member of the Constituent Assembly / Legislature Parliament | |
| In office 28 May 2008 – 14 October 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Benup Raj Prasai (as Member of Parliament) |
| Succeeded by | Himself (as Member of Parliament) |
| Constituency | Ilam 1 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 May 1950 |
| Party | Nepali Communist Party |
Other political affiliations | CPN (UML) (until 2018; 2021) Nepal Communist Party (2018–2021) CPN (Unified Socialist) (2021–2025) |
| Spouse | Ravi Laxmi Chitrakar |
Since 5 November 2025, he has been serving as the senior leader of the Nepali Communist Party, a new party formed through merger of eight different communist parties and splinter groups.[3][4]
Life
Khanal was born in Sakhejung of Ilam District to a hill Brahmin family of the Khanal clan.
Political career
Khanal was a member of the Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist-Leninist), and its General Secretary from 1982 to 1986. Later, he became a member of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist).
Government posts
Khanal served for a time as Minister of Information and Communication in the 1997 coalition government under Surya Bahadur Thapa.[5]
Khanal won the seat of the Ilam 1 constituency in the 2008 Constituent Assembly election. He led the CPN (UML) as General Secretary from 2008 to February 2009 and was elected Chairman of the CPN (UML) on February 16, 2009.[1]
Premiership
On 3 February 2011, after seven months of political gridlock in which no candidate could muster enough votes to be elected as Prime Minister, Jhala Nath Khanal was elected Prime Minister by the 1st Nepalese Constituent Assembly.[2] Khanal received 368 votes in the 601-member parliament, while his nearest rivals, Ram Chandra Poudel of the Nepali Congress got 122 votes and Bijay Kumar Gachhedar of Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum (Loktantrik) got 67 votes.[2]
Nepal had no proper government since Madhav Kumar Nepal resigned in June 2010. Nepal ran interim government for nearly eight months. Sixteen rounds of voting in parliament since July were unable to produce a new Prime minister as no political party could muster a majority.[2] However, on 3 February 2011 the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) withdrew its candidate, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and backed Khanal. As a result, he became the third Prime Minister of Nepal since it became a federal democratic republic in 2008.[2]
Khanal resigned on 29 August 2011 after nearly six months after the parties failed to agree on the constitution drafting and the peace process amidst a new political crisis.[6] The extended duration of Constituent Assembly was to expire on 31 August 2011.[7][8]
The Nepali Congress and the Madhesi parties had asked the Prime Minister to resign immediately after being unsuccessful in completing peace process and drafting a new constitution. Even the party leaders increased pressure on Mr. Khanal in order to prevent the party from notoriety.[9][10]
Electoral history
2022 legislative election
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mahesh Basnet | CPN (UML) | 25,753 | 45.17 | |
| Jhalanath Khanal | CPN (Unified Socialist) | 23,089 | 40.49 | |
| Budhha Lal Meche | Mongol National Organisation | 2,442 | 4.28 | |
| Toyanath Sharma Sapkota | Rastriya Prajatantra Party | 1,599 | 2.80 | |
| Kamal Kumar Rai | People's Socialist Party, Nepal | 1,313 | 2.30 | |
| Bikram Pandey | Independent | 1,184 | 2.08 | |
| Others | 1,638 | 2.87 | ||
| Total | 57,018 | 100.00 | ||
| Majority | 2,664 | |||
| CPN (UML) gain | ||||
| Source: [11] | ||||
2017 legislative elections
| Ilam 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| CPN (UML) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 36,805 | |
| Nepali Congress | Bhupendra Kattel | 19,638 | |
| Federal Socialist Forum, Nepal | Subas Rai | 2,059 | |
| Mongol National Organisation | Surya Kumar Gurung | 1,710 | |
| Others | 1,902 | ||
| Invalid votes | 2,365 | ||
| Result | CPN (UML) hold | ||
| Source: Election Commission | |||
2013 Constituent Assembly election
| Sarlahi 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| Nepali Congress | Shambhu Lal Shrestha | 9,476 | |
| CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 8,791 | |
| Terai Madhesh Sadbhavna Party | Chandra Singh Kushwaha | 4,588 | |
| Rastriya Prajatantra Party Nepal | Narayan Shrestha | 2,729 | |
| Terai Madhesh Loktantrik Party | Gopal Panjiyar | 2,050 | |
| Sadbhavana Party | Rup Narayan Singh Danuwar | 1,614 | |
| Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum, Nepal (Democratic) | Shiva Kumar Gurmachhane | 1,399 | |
| Rastriya Madhesh Samajbadi Party | Jagat Narayan Shrestha | 1,107 | |
| Others | 2,466 | ||
| Result | NC gain | ||
| Source: NepalNews[12] | |||
| Ilam 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 17,342 | |
| Nepali Congress | Himalaya Karmacharya | 15,527 | |
| Federal Socialist Party, Nepal | Devendra Kumar Rai | 4,529 | |
| UCPN (Maoist) | Yuba Kumar Paudel | 4,420 | |
| Others | 2,423 | ||
| Result | CPN (UML) hold | ||
| Source: NepalNews[13] | |||
2011 Parliamentary Prime Minister election
| Party | Candidate[14] | Votes | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPN (UML) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 368 | Elected | |
| Nepali Congress | Ram Chandra Poudel | 122 | Lost | |
| Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum (Loktantrik) | Bijay Kumar Gachhadar | 67 | Lost | |
2008 Constituent Assembly election
| Ilam 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 17,655 | |
| Nepali Congress | Benup Raj Prasai | 13,774 | |
| CPN (Maoist) | Surya Prakash Bala | 10,917 | |
| Rastriya Prajatantra Party | Lila Devi Shrestha | 2,167 | |
| Others | 2,040 | ||
| Invalid votes | 2,086 | ||
| Result | CPN (UML) gain | ||
| Source: Election Commission[15] | |||
1999 legislative elections
| Ilam 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| Nepali Congress | Benup Raj Prasai | 18,608 | |
| CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 18,502 | |
| Rastriya Prajatantra Party | Ganesh Rasik Rai | 1,919 | |
| Others | 1,715 | ||
| Invalid Votes | 758 | ||
| Result | Congress gain | ||
| Source: Election Commission[16][17] | |||
1994 legislative elections
| Ilam 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 14,383 | |
| Nepali Congress | Toya Nath Bhattarai | 14,173 | |
| Independent | Gopal Gurung | 1,611 | |
| Rastriya Prajatantra Party | Chandra Kant Bhat Rai | 1,428 | |
| Rastriya Janamukti Party | Chanra Bahadur Thulung | 1,030 | |
| Others | 508 | ||
| Result | CPN (UML) hold | ||
| Source: Election Commission[16] | |||
1991 legislative elections
| Ilam 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | |
| CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) | Jhala Nath Khanal | 25,540 | |
| Nepali Congress | Toya Nath Bhattarai | 19,270 | |
| Result | CPN (UML) gain | ||
| Source: | |||
