Despite her husband’s past, Sushila Karki built her own independent identity and became one of Nepal’s strongest voices against corruption.
It is an irony of Nepal’s politics that Sushila Karki, now being considered as interim head of government, was once endorsed by KP Sharma Oli, the Prime Minister who has been forced out. Karki made history on July 11, 2016, when she became Nepal’s first woman Chief Justice.
She earned a reputation for fearless decisions. During her one-year tenure, she passed landmark verdicts against sitting ministers and influential bureaucrats, but she also has a disturbing and controversial past.
Karki’s personal story is closely tied to a dramatic event in Nepal’s history. Her husband, Durga Prasad Subedi, was part of the country’s first plane hijacking in 1973.
On June 10, 1973, a Royal Nepal Airlines flight from Biratnagar to Kathmandu was hijacked, and Bollywood actress Mala Sinha was among the 19 passengers on board. The hijackers, led by former Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, targeted the Rs 30 lakh being transported on the flight.
The plane was forced to land in Forbesganj, Bihar, and the money was smuggled to Darjeeling. Subedi, then a youth leader of the Nepali Congress, was later arrested in Mumbai and jailed for two years before being released in 1975 during the Emergency in India.
Despite her husband’s past, Sushila Karki built her own independent identity and became one of Nepal’s strongest voices against corruption.
Her most notable ruling came when she sentenced then Information and Communication Minister Jayaprakash Gupta to jail while he was still in office. This was the first such decision in Nepal’s judicial history.
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In another bold verdict, she removed Lokman Singh Karki, the head of the anti-corruption bureau. Lokman Singh was later forced into exile in Canada.
Karki’s tough stance came with political consequences, and Parliament once tabled an impeachment motion against her, leading to her temporary suspension as Chief Justice.
The Supreme Court later reinstated her, while also revising the constitutional rule that had allowed automatic suspension after an impeachment motion. The move highlighted her resilience in the face of political pressure.
Born in Biratnagar, Sushila Karki came from a family connected with Nepali Congress founder BP Koirala. While her father wanted her to become a doctor, she chose to study law instead.
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She completed her Master’s in Political Science at Banaras Hindu University (BHU), where she met her husband. Later, she pursued law at Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu.
Today, as Nepal faces widespread Gen Z protests over corruption and authoritarianism, Karki’s fearless image has resurfaced. Many young protesters have put forward her name to lead an interim government.
If chosen, she would once again be called upon to demonstrate the courage and independence that defined her tenure in the judiciary.
