coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

began on 1 February, when

democratically elected An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

members of the country's

ruling party The ruling party or governing party in a democratic parliamentary or presidential system is the political party or coalition holding a majority of elected positions in a parliament, in the case of parliamentary systems, or holding the executive ...

, the

Nepali Congress The Nepali Congress ( ne, नेपाली कांग्रेस ; abbr. NC) is the largest social democratic political party in Nepal. As per the results of recent local election, ''Nepali Congress'' stands as the single largest party o ...

were deposed by

Gyanendra Gyanendra Shah ( ne, ज्ञानेन्द्र शाह, born 7 July 1947) is a former monarch who was the last King of Nepal, reigning from 2001 to 2008. As a child, he was briefly king from 1950 to 1951, when his grandfather, Tribhuva ...

King of Nepal The King of Nepal (traditionally known as the Mahārājdhirāja i.e. Great King of Kings; it can also be translated as "Sovereign Emperor" ( ne, श्री ५ महाराजधिराज)) was Nepal's head of state and monarch from 1768 ...

. The parliament was reinstated in 2006, when the king agreed to give up absolute power following the

Loktantra Andolan The 2006 Democracy Movement ( ne, text=लोकतन्त्र आन्दोलन, translit=Loktantra Āndolan) is a name given to the political agitations against the direct and undemocratic rule of King Gyanendra of Nepal. The movement ...

. The coup was condemned by

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Background

The Nepalese Government was previously ruled as an

absolute monarchy Absolute monarchy (or Absolutism as a doctrine) is a form of monarchy in which the monarch rules in their own right or power. In an absolute monarchy, the king or queen is by no means limited and has absolute power, though a limited constitut ...

following the

1960 Nepal coup d'état 1960 Nepal coup d'état was a ''coup d'état'' led by King Mahendra on 15 December 1960. The same day, he dismissed the cabinet of B.P. Koirala and imprisoned Koirala. On 13 April 1961, Mahendra made a televised appearance, in which he introduc ...

led by King

Mahendra Mahendra is a Sanskrit compound word deriving from Maha (Highest position) and Indra Deva (the King of Gods) from Hindu mythology.{{Citation needed, date=April 2022 It has been used in compound royal styles. History and politics Royalty * M ...

until it became a

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

in 1991 during King

Birendra Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev ( ne, श्री ५ महाराजाधिराज वीरेन्द्र वीर विक्रम शाह देव ) (28 December 1945 – 1 June 2001) was the tenth Shah Ruler and the King of N ...

's reign. King

came into power after the

Nepalese royal massacre The Nepalese royal massacre occurred on 1 June 2001 at the Narayanhiti Palace, the then-residence of the Nepalese monarchy. Nine members of the royal family, including King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya, were killed in a mass shooting during a ga ...

where ten members of the

royal family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...

, including King

, Queen Aishwarya, and Crown Prince Dipendra were killed. King had previously dismissed three governments from 2002. The

Nepalese Civil War The Nepalese Civil War was a protracted armed conflict that took place in the former Kingdom of Nepal from 1996 to 2006. It saw fighting between the Nepalese royal government and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) throughout the country. ...

led by

Maoists Maoism, officially called Mao Zedong Thought by the Chinese Communist Party, is a variety of Marxism–Leninism that Mao Zedong developed to realise a socialist revolution in the agricultural, pre-industrial society of the Republic of Chi ...

was still raging on with over 11,000 people dead. Nepal had no parliament from 2002. Gyanendra's popularity had fallen down.

Unfolding of the coup

On 1 February when King

declared a

state of emergency A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...

and dissolved the parliament of Nepal. The members of parliament were put under house arrest, "key constitutional rights were suspended, soldiers enforced complete censorship, and communications were cut". The coup was condemned by

, the

, and the

. The king's rule lasted for over a year, until 24 April 2006, when the king agreed to give up absolute power and to reinstate the dissolved

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

, following the

Background

Unfolding of the coup

References

Further reading