Outgoing Prime Minister Sushila Karki Reflects on Leading Nepal Through Crisis and Successful Elections

Kathmandu, 1 Chaitra: Prime Minister Sushila Karki has fulfilled the responsibility of holding the House of Representatives elections on schedule after taking charge of the executive head during the country's precarious situation.

Amidst doubts about whether elections would take place, the peaceful elections were successfully concluded on Falgun 21, results were announced, and preparations for forming a new government have begun, bringing a sense of satisfaction to Prime Minister Karki. Prime Minister Karki spoke candidly with RSS correspondent Kalika Khadka about the problems and challenges faced while fulfilling the duty of conducting elections, and her experiences leading the government as a former Chief Justice.

The edited transcript of the conversation with Prime Minister Karki:

The elections for the House of Representatives were completed peacefully. As Prime Minister, you led successfully. How are you feeling?

I don't feel any particularly different. However, everyone was worried about the country. The elections were held peacefully amidst uncertainty. Everyone who cares about the country and wishes for its well-being is happy. I am also happy. We were able to complete the responsibility assigned to the government on time. I feel a sense of joy.

You took on the responsibility of the executive head during a difficult time for the country. Since it was the post-Maoist insurgency situation, there must have been challenges in the initial days. How do you recall those challenges?

There were many challenges when I took the lead. I myself wondered if I could even do the job. I only had six months. Moreover, many people attacked and doubted me. All the old political parties stood against us. Those who claimed to be the 'Maoist' elements immediately told me to leave. They claimed they came by hijacking the movement. At that time, very few people supported us. Cabinet members consoled each other while working. Even when meeting representatives from foreign diplomatic missions, questions like 'Is it possible?' were raised. Peace and sympathy did not come from many quarters. We did not have a large base of supporters or an organization behind us. We were a limited number in the government. There were many attacks during that time. People did not trust us. Furthermore, there were comments about me being a woman. But I heard it with one ear and let it go out the other. I did not leave my work.

In such a difficult situation, where did the courage, bravery, and confidence to say 'I can lead' come from?

The feeling that I could do it came from deep within. Before becoming Prime Minister, I hadn't estimated it. My body, strength, and power were like that of a 16 to 18-year-old. If one says 'I can't,' people can even have a 'stroke' due to high blood pressure. Criticism appeared everywhere in the newspapers. Instead of my blood pressure rising, it decreased. Even the doctor was surprised. But I don't have a habit of panicking. I have gone through that experience. There is a political value system. People from the judiciary have also gone through it. I have faced a difficult situation. It felt the same in the court, but one cannot express it there. Here, one can express it.

Another thing is that since childhood, I was taught, 'You must endure, don't panic.' Since childhood, I felt that if one attempts something with determination, anything can be achieved. I also had self-confidence. I prayed to God many times. I thought about how long Nepalis would have to sacrifice their lives, sometimes due to the Maoist armed conflict, sometimes due to killings, sometimes due to other issues. I joined my hands and prayed, 'God, please do this much.'

I lack nothing. I became Chief Justice. I became Prime Minister. I have my son and daughter-in-law. I have a grandson. I have a place to live. I am content with everything. I prayed, 'I don't need anything personal now; grant salvation to the country where I was born and raised, God.' Whatever I asked for, I received. Perhaps my father and mother blessed me from above... I said it wouldn't rain on election day, and it didn't. I said it wouldn't snow, and it didn't. I said this with my self-confidence. Coincidentally, the weather was good. And I thanked nature too.

While leading the country, was there any moment when you felt the most difficult turning point, that you might not be able to manage?

That happened repeatedly. The day the parents of the martyrs of the Maoist movement came to Baluwatar and cried, I felt like I would have a heart attack. Newspapers kept saying, 'The government cannot do it.' One Maoist element said, 'We should have run the government, why did you run it?' They couldn't say 'I can do it' to the President initially. But as the government's term was ending, they came asking to be made ministers. But I didn't get angry; they are just children.

One or two people even said, 'I will make this government fail and become the Prime Minister myself.' Political parties also suggested that even if you are the Prime Minister, you should run the government by keeping ministers from political parties. It seems the Prime Minister is the biggest thing in this country. For me, it is not that precious. Even now, I prefer to be called Chief Justice. I prefer the environment of the judiciary. But people are attracted to the position of Prime Minister. They also said, 'If Sushila can do it, why can't we?' They also used abusive language, commenting on my clothes, my bangles, and how I walked crookedly. No matter how much they criticize, it doesn't matter to me. It's their perspective.

From which point did you become certain that elections would happen?

I was appointed Prime Minister on Bhadra 27. The next day, the 28th, was a Saturday, and the Election Commission started working from the 29th. First, we focused on the problems of the families of the martyrs of the Maoist movement. We listened to what their families said and acted accordingly. After that, we focused on the elections.

We also requested assistance from neighboring countries for the elections. The police lacked vehicles. We received assistance from friendly nations India and China. We focused our main efforts on the elections. We facilitated everything the Election Commission asked for. We consulted with the President to create a conducive mental environment. 21-22 groups emerged from the Maoist movement. One said one thing, another said something else. The Maoist movement became like a sister organization of a party. Some demanded an executive Prime Minister, some an elected Prime Minister, and some demanded constitutional amendment. They were also demanding things that the constitution does not allow. We couldn't ignore what the Maoist groups were saying. Political parties said—this government is only going to conduct elections. The Maoists said—do all the work; this is a government that came from a rebellion. We felt like we were jumping on a hot plate. We had to endure that situation too.

Amidst various ups and downs, the elections were historically completed peacefully. Don't you feel like you have achieved the biggest accomplishment of your life?

I don't feel that way. I took the first-grade exam in life and passed. I took the second-grade exam and passed. While studying, I passed my Master's degree. Life keeps presenting exams according to the time. Truly speaking, this was a struggle in life. The country found relief. Initially, a phrase came from my mouth: 'No one should die in the election. Not a single drop of blood should be shed.' Ultimately, it was peaceful just like that. I want to thank the general public. The Nepali Army, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, National Investigation Department, Election Police, and all security personnel have made a huge contribution to making the election successful in this manner. As Prime Minister, I want to thank them very much.

Whose cooperation was instrumental in making the election and the government successful?

The main responsibility of the government was to conduct the elections. I want to give 50 percent of the credit for this to the Election Commission. The contribution made under the leadership of Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari and the three commissioners will not be forgotten by history. Although there should be five officials in the commission, these three accomplished such a great task. As Prime Minister, I want to thank all three officials and the entire commission. Among the cabinet members, I want to thank Home Minister Omprakash Aryal the most. He has worked day and night. I also thank the other ministers.

Every citizen has an equal contribution to the success of this government. The heads of all four security agencies also played a major role in creating an integrated security plan, implementing it effectively, and bringing the country safely to this point.

Two close associates who helped me succeed have done unforgettable favors in my life: Press Advisor Ram Bahadur Rawal and Chief Personal Secretary Adarsh Kumar Shrestha. Mr. Rawal is not just a journalist; he only has honesty and a feeling of wanting to help people. Chief Personal Secretary Shrestha is a court employee. He is a law student with good knowledge of court procedures and law. He is a person who has worked as the personal assistant to many Chief Justices. He was also my personal assistant when I was Chief Justice. These two did the work that 20-25 people in the secretariat would do.

He is a person who has worked in the court for a long time and has a good grasp of IT and law. He has worked as the personal assistant in the secretariat of many Chief Justices and has earned everyone's trust. At this age, Adarsh is responsible for 75 percent of my success. It was possible because of his contribution. Earlier, the Prime Minister's secretariat had 40-50 employees. I want to thank all of them profusely.

Furthermore, Lieutenant Colonel Balmukunda Bista and Major Suraj Ojha of the Nepali Army are extremely learned. They used to update me on global matters. Sub-Lieutenant Goma Budhathoki took care of me like a daughter.

There was a controversy regarding the secretariat in between. What exactly happened?

My home area is a Newar area. I was receiving help from them in my household management. For the residence at Baluwatar and other personal assistance, I brought some known people from the Newar community. Their work was not any official state affair; it was purely to assist me with personal matters. Chief Personal Secretary Adarsh is also a Newar. Later, people brought up the issue of 'nepotism,' claiming they were all Adarsh's relatives. They were not Adarsh's people; they were my people. I did not like that criticism. So, I dismissed many people, including those who cooked. For a few days, I cooked myself. Then the security personnel also helped. Criticism happens, but it is surprising that previous Prime Ministers kept up to 90 people in their secretariats, and there was no nepotism. I, at the age of 73, was forced to do all the work myself. I was pushed to the point of having to dismiss them. When they couldn't attack me directly, they attacked my secretariat staff. But today, I want to thank all of them.

The main challenge initially was to communicate with political parties to conduct the elections. How did you face that challenge?

There were 125-130 parties in the country. They have diverse ideologies. Many have 'Ram Ram' on their lips but a knife in their pocket. Some run parties alone. Some collect money and move around. There are people of every nature. Some are communist, some are democratic. Some lean towards the former King. No matter who the Prime Minister is, no one says, 'Let's build the country.' There is only the lure of the chair.

Everything cannot be achieved by sitting in the chair. If one wants to build the country, working in one's own field is enough. Even if they do nothing else, if they educate their children well, the family will be built. But only the lure of the chair is visible. I, coming from the legal field, didn't even think I would complete six months. We were insulted. We met leaders who insulted us very badly. We even heard someone telling the Maoist representatives at the President's office to 'Get out' right then. They said, 'We won't keep you as Prime Minister.' We tolerated even that 'you' and 'I' language. If I had said, 'You told me to leave, and I left,' who would have taken responsibility for the country? I am also a citizen of this country. I love this country. I couldn't leave.

We met many people from political parties. We held discussions with leaders of major political parties, including the then President of the Nepali Congress Sher Bahadur Deuba, CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli, CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', and leaders of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, as well as all 125 parties. There was such a big movement. We brought the country from that situation to the current one. One IGP scolded me while I was speaking. All this was a struggle.

Old employees and old secretaries were looking for the old parties. New ones say new things. We endured all that and brought the country to a peaceful state. Tireless efforts were made for that. I held up to 14 meetings in a single day. We often sat until 2 or 3 in the morning. We held five or ten meetings every day, meeting people. It was all an effort to create an environment.

Also, the culture was such that everyone had to meet the Prime Minister and take a photo, and we did that too. Because we had to create an election environment somehow. Even until 5:00 PM on election day, there was uncertainty about what would happen. We prevented the situation where an attack might occur while voting was underway. Tension was created in some places regarding religious and communal issues. We stopped those too.

The National Investigation Department, kept under the Prime Minister, had been rendered ineffective. Now, it has been placed under the Ministry of Home Affairs and activated. The information from the Investigation Department played a significant role in completing these elections and averting many major disasters.

The major political parties had even gone to the Supreme Court for the reinstatement of the dissolved House of Representatives, hadn't they?

The government had to conduct elections somehow. We held repeated dialogues and discussions with all parties. Work was done to steer the country entirely towards elections. Ultimately, it was successful.

In the elections, new parties have won with nearly a two-thirds majority, and established old parties appear weak. How do you view this result?

This result belongs to the youth. It is also an effect of the Maoist movement. It is also the desire for change. But old parties should not panic, and new ones should not become arrogant. What happened was beyond our expectations. I didn't even think Mr. Oli would lose. That place is where he has been in politics for 30-40 years, where all his well-wishers are. When I met him last, I told Mr. Oli. In politics, what happens is that even my family members are in the Congress party. They criticize the party all year, but they vote for it when it's time to vote. I told him they would vote for you. I didn't think it would happen like that. The mandate given by the people must be respected. The votes received by the RSP must be respected. Even if the opposition gets fewer votes, the RSP must respect that. In politics, before the election, there is this party and that party. After the election, the winner should not neglect the minority. The RSP must respect the old parties. If the ruling side does wrong, the opposition must protest. Politics is social service. In India, Indira Gandhi lost in the same way and won later. The people of Nepal do not forget mature leaders. Today there is one wave, tomorrow another might come.

What could the current government achieve in terms of establishing good governance and controlling corruption in line with the spirit of the Maoist movement on Bhadra 23 and 24?

We made every possible effort for good governance and corruption control. We did not spend extravagantly like previous governments. I did not take a salary. I live in Baluwatar. That's all. I didn't take anything. It was necessary to use bulletproof vehicles and a Nepali Army helicopter for travel abroad. Some ministers also did not take salaries. Some ministers have no other source of income, so they had to take it.

We cut unnecessary expenses. The account for the election is a total expenditure of only Rs 32 billion. But that expenditure also includes what went to the police, army, and security materials. Those materials will be useful in the future too. Only essential expenses were incurred. The Election Commission also spent minimally, very frugally. For the National Assembly elections, only Rs 20 million was spent against an estimate of four crores.

Some ministers, including myself, did not even get red passports made. We did not burden the state treasury with foreign visits. We went to some districts to understand the election situation and to encourage the deployed manpower. I think there was no government in the past that adopted such frugality.

In appointments and promotions in the bureaucracy and security organizations, we considered seniority and capability, leaving no room for manipulation. We worked to boost the long-term morale of those organizations.

We gave due respect to academic institutions like universities. We did not interfere in appointments there. We did not provide lists of our people for appointments and nominations in the assemblies of 19 universities. Although there were up to 45 appointments there, and all those members were only from the ruling party. We did not appoint relatives. There was also criticism that the heads of security organizations were of the Karki surname. But they are not my relatives named Karki; perhaps our clans don't even match.

When appointing the Chief Secretary, we also considered seniority. Furthermore, institutions like the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), Nepal Police, CIB, etc., have worked with unprecedented professional independence. I highly praise the heads and officials of those institutions.

Officials of the commission formed to investigate the Maoist movement also mentioned that they did not have to listen to any lobbying during this government's tenure. We sent institutions like the Department of Money Laundering Investigation and the Revenue Investigation Department from under the Prime Minister to their respective ministries. The Prime Minister is the Chancellor of 19 universities in the country. We tried to amend this, but it was not possible to bring an ordinance. We shouldn't keep just anyone. Appointments should be based on expertise.

The investigation commission formed to probe the incidents of Bhadra 23 and 24 has submitted its report. There is a demand for the report to be made public and implemented. What is the government doing about this?

The commission has submitted its report. The cabinet meeting is taking place today. We will discuss it there and make a decision. We also don't have much time left. A new mandate has arrived. The new government will surely move the remaining process forward.

A new government will be formed in a few days. What is your message to the new government?

The new government must first fulfill the three demands raised by the Maoist movement: establishing good governance, controlling corruption, and arranging employment. The biggest problem is the lack of employment. There is nepotism even in the available opportunities. The economic situation must be improved by removing such conditions. Open corruption must be stopped. The biggest reform I see needs to be made inside Singha Durbar. The employees working there are seen to be politicized. When secretaries are spinning things around for every task, they bring two or three options for their self-interest, but if it's not about their self-interest but about the country, they just say it's not possible or not allowed. They show the CIAA. If they can't manage, they say, 'You will get into controversy, sir.' I find that rubbish. 75 percent of the impact on government work came from there.

No project is completed on time. If one is Nepali, one should feel concerned. Today, I say with sadness, we did not receive any support. But after we inspired them to work with full professional independence, the CIAA has advanced some major cases during this period. It has registered 40-45 corruption cases since this government came into power. Otherwise, there was no support from anywhere.

The bureaucracy must be streamlined. I see the need to take a major revolutionary step now for the reform of the bureaucracy. With the current methods, it does not seem possible to bring a good image.

You have already created history as the first female Prime Minister. What will you do after stepping down from responsibility?

I have completed the work that needed to be done by becoming Prime Minister in a difficult situation. Now I will return to my old private routine.

There is also talk of you becoming President?

I have no other desire now. There are many other people more capable and who haven't had the opportunity than me.

Finally, is there anything specific you want to say about your tenure as Prime Minister?

The government had the responsibility to conduct the elections. That has been fulfilled. Some efforts have also been made in the areas of development. The new government must provide employment to the youth of the country. An environment must be created for them to stay in the country. Let the situation where people have to return in a box after going abroad end. Education reform is necessary. An environment of trust in the country must be built. It is a very beautiful country in terms of natural resources. Now, there should be no situation of conflict and tension. Let an environment be created where everyone lives together. I understood that Balen's election campaign sent a message that the Terai, hills, and mountains are united. I also have faith in Balen. I hope something good will happen.

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