Mrs. Bidya Devi Bhandari
Mrs. Bidya Devi Bhandari was born on June 19, 1961 (Ashar 5, 2018 B.S.) in Manebhanjyang, a hilly village in Bhojpur district of eastern Nepal. She is the eldest of five children born to Mithila Pandey and late Ram Bahadur Pandey.Coming from a farming family, she overcame many struggles to eventually rise to Nepal’s highest constitutional position, the President, making her journey deeply inspiring and empowering.
Her early education began in her village at Behereshwar Primary School, and continued at Panchakanya Middle School, Bhulké, and Vidyodaya Vocational Secondary School in Bhojpur. For higher education, she studied at Bhojpur Campus and later at Mahendra Morang Adarsha Multiple Campus in Biratnagar.
While studying at Bhojpur Campus, her political consciousness began to take shape. She came to understand the root causes of Nepal’s social struggles and concluded that democracy was essential for the nation's progress. This realization drew her toward leftist and democratic movements. She became active not only in advocating for students' rights but also in the anti-monarchy and anti-Panchayat democratic movement. This marked the beginning of a challenging and risky political journey.
During this period, she became a leading student leader in the Eastern Regional Committee of the All Nepal National Free Students’ Union (ANNFSU). She was later elected as an official of the Free Student Union at Mahendra Morang Adarsha Multiple Campus, gaining recognition as a popular student leader.
As a student at Bhojpur's Vidyodaya Secondary School, she made contact with the Communist Party, which was functioning underground during that period. Following the establishment of CPN (Marxist-Leninist) in 1978 (2035 B.S.), she joined the party's Youth League, marking the beginning of her organized political life. By 1980 (2037 B.S.), she had also joined the All Nepal Women’s Association (ANWA) and would later lead the organization as its Chairperson for three terms.
From the outset, she consistently advocated against gender discrimination and fought for women’s rights and equality. Her political identity was shaped through a blend of student activism, advocacy for women's rights, and dedication to the party's struggle for democracy.
In 1982 (2039 B.S.), she married Madan Bhandari, a respected leader of the communist movement. Tragically, her husband died in a mysterious jeep accident in 1993 (Jestha 3, 2050 B.S.), ending their 11-year marriage. After his death, she raised their two young daughters, Usha Kiran and Nisha Kusum, while continuing to take on greater political responsibilities.
Her political career reached new heights when she was elected to Parliament in the 1993 by-election following her husband's death. She went on to be elected as a Member of Parliament three times through direct elections. Following the Second People's Movement of 2005/06, in the reinstated parliament, she played a key role in pushing forward four proposals in Parliament related to women’s rights, most notably the landmark provision mandating 33% female representation in all state bodies, later institutionalized in both the interim and current Constitution of Nepal.
She also held various high-ranking positions, including Minister of Environment and Population, Minister of Defense (Nepal’s first female to hold this office) & Vice President of the CPN (UML) for two terms.
In October 2015, she was elected by the Legislature-Parliament as the second President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, the first woman to hold the office, and the first President after the promulgation of Nepal’s new constitution. She was re-elected in March 2018, serving two consecutive terms until March 2023.