Bam Dev Gautam

Bam Dev Gautam (Nepali: बाम देव गौतम, born July 11, 1944 in Banaras, India) is the former Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal.^[1][2] He is a senior leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN(UML)). He is currently the senior Vice Chairman of CPN(UML) and a member of the Standing Committee of the Party. Bam dev Gautam joined the Communist party of Nepal in 1964 and participated in full-time party activities from Rupandehi District in 1969. He became District Secretary of CPN Rupandehi in 1972. He played a major role in establishing Mukti Morcha with Madan Bhandari and Jeev Raj Ashrit. He later became Central member of Communist Party of Nepal(Marxist-Leninist) in 1980. After the merger, he was made a Politburo member of CPN(UML) and also attained the position of Deputy General Secretary of the party.^[3]

He was elected MP from Bardiya Constituency No. 1 in first General Election 1991 and Mid Term Election 1994. Later he became the Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister in February 1997. Bam Dev Gautam played a major role in splitting the CPN(UML) over the issue of Mahakali treaty with India and later formed CPN(ML) in March 5, 1998. He was elected General Secretary of the party in March of that year. The party failed to get a single seat in House in next election. Later, Bam Dev Gautam again joined the CPN(UML).^[4]

On 31 August 2008, Bam Dev Gautam was appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister in the Maoist-led Coalition Government.^[5]

In February 2009, Bam Dev Gautam was elected one of the Vice-Chairman of CPN(UML) in Butwal General Convention.^[6]

On 2 May 2010 during Maoist protests, Bam Dev Gautam called for the Prime Minister to resign to end the current political stalemate.^[7]

He is a member of the 2nd Nepalese Constituent Assembly. He won the Bardia–1 seat in CA assembly, 2013 from the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist).^[8][9]

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