By Our Reporter

Former UML leader and former minister Pradeep Nepal passed away at the age of 71 on Tuesday.

He quit the UML after Prime Minister KP Oli dissolved the parliament in 2020. Instead, he was close to Madhav Nepal although he did not officially join the CPN (Unified Socialist).

He died while undergoing treatment at Norvic International Hospital in Thapathali.

Nepal had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease for a long time and was diagnosed with pneumonia in his final days.

He had been admitted to the hospital for several days, but his health condition deteriorated recently and he was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Nepal was cremated at the Pashupati Aryaghat-based electric crematorium on Monday.

However, no party flag was wrapped around his body not and a party-level programem to pay him tribute was organised as he wished so.

He had reportedly expressed to his family members that the party should not hold any tribute programmes and that no party flag should be wrapped around his body.

Senior communist and CPN-UML leaders including Vice-chairman Ishwor Pokharel, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel, Bam Dev Gautam, Radha Krishna Mainali and CP Mainali were present at his final rites.

Nepal had served as Minister for Information and Minister of Water Resources in the country’s first communist government led by Prime Minister Manmohan Adhikari in 1994.

He also held the portfolios of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Water Resources in 1999.

Nepal was a former politburo member of the CPN-UML and served as the party’s spokesperson and chief of its publicity department.

Born in January 1954 in Bhojpur district, Nepal had spent time in prison during the Panchayat regime.

Nepal was a prominent literary figure. His book Deumaiko Kinarma was popular among readers.He served as editor of various news weeklies and wrote for different newspapers as a communist writer.

His novels and collections of short stories are widely read.