Birth: 14 October 1932, Kathmandu

Death: 16 March 2021, Gangalal Hospital, Kathmandu

Maniklal Shrestha, a leader of the Newari language movement, analyst of left politics, and respected academic, died aged 89 in Kathmandu.

A mentor for most of Nepal’s current and ex-communist leaders, Shrestha had for long been fighting kidney and heart ailments and was hospitalized a few weeks ago after falling unconscious.

Shrestha first started reading extensively as a student of Tri-Chandra Campus in Kathmandu, where he also came across the works of Marx and Engels. Deeply inspired by Marxist philosophy, he cultivated a close-knit network with Nepali left-leaning intellectuals and communist leaders.

A good friend of late Pushpa Lal Shrestha, founder of the Communist Party of Nepal, he helped draft the young party’s manifesto. Later, the royal regime arrested him for his involvement in the communist movement. 

The man behind the establishment of Nepal Sambat and Kirat Sambat (calendars based on the history of Newar and Kirat communities), Shrestha also helped establish Nepal Bhasa (Newari language) as one of the country’s official languages. A sharp historian, learner, and mother-tongue activist, Shrestha was known for his uncanny ability to explain difficult ideas in simple, everyday terms. He had an extraordinary memory and often mentioned exact historical dates, time, and even page numbers of books while giving talks. He was a walking encyclopedia for fellow researchers and students.

Shrestha had an MA in English and an LLB, both from Kolkata University, India, before returning home to start teaching at Tribhuvan University. He was the first Nepali to graduate in Constitutional Law.

Elected ward-chairperson of Kathmandu-9 (now Kathmandu-17) in 1958, Shrestha in his lifetime never visited any temple or performed religious rites. He was a women’s rights activist and, unknown to many, was the first to lobby for and ensure women’s voting rights in his electoral constituency, even before Switzerland did so in 1974.

He was also a journalist and wrote articles for Nepal Bhasa daily and various other national and international newspapers. He wrote and translated extensively, and authored acclaimed books like Historical Development of Juche Cause (in English), Manab Samaj ko Bikash Bare Marxbadi distrikon (in Nepali), and Samalochanayam Siddhanta (in Newari).

Shrestha was married to late Sushila Singh, the first female judge of Nepal’s Supreme Court, who passed away almost a year ago on 22 May 2020. He is survived by two sons: senior cardiologist Dr. Malakhlal Shrestha and physician Dr. Situlal Shrestha.

Communist leaders and intellectuals have expressed sorrow over Shrestha’s demise. Posting a picture of himself with hospitalized Shrestha, former Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai said on Twitter: “The country has lost an extraordinary intellectual figure.” Political analyst Shyam Shrestha remembered his senior colleague Maniklal Shrestha as “a very down-to-earth, helpful, easily accessible, and welcoming man”. Chairman of CPN (Maoist Center) and former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said: “The demise of Prof. Shrestha is a blow to the whole progressive-communist movement of Nepal.”