Former Nepal President Bidhya Bhandari returns to active politics

Oct 09, 2026

Former Nepal President Bidhya Devi Bhandari has returned to active politics, taking up a senior leadership role in the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist), or CPN-UML. On October 8, party chairman KP Sharma Oli administered her oath at the party headquarters in Lalitpur, Nepal. Bhandari subsequently attended the party’s Standing Committee meeting. Nepal’s first woman president, she served two terms from 2015 to 2023 before stepping away from party politics. Her comeback follows the party’s reversal of its earlier opposition to former presidents returning to active politics. Bhandari’s appointment comes amid internal restructuring following the UML’s electoral defeat in March, potentially shaping the party’s leadership dynamics and future political direction.