Upendra Yadav

Upendra Yadav ( उपेन्द्र यादव; born 12 November 1960) is a Nepalese politician who served as the chairman of the People's Socialist Party, Nepal from 2020 until 2023. He served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal under the government of KP Sharma Oli from 2018 to 2020. He also served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Dahal cabinet from 2008 to 2009 and in the Khanal cabinet in 2011. Yadav lost an election in 2022, being defeated by Janamat Party chair CK Raut in Saptari 2 with a margin of 18,000 votes. Yadav was born in Bhagwatpur, Saptari to Dhanilal Yadav and Phudani Devi Yadav on 12 November 1960. He grew up in Madhuwan and completed his SLC examinations there in 1975. He completed his bachelor's degree in mathematics from Hattisar College in Dharan and his master's degree in law at Mahendra Morang Adarsh Multiple Campus in Biratnagar. Yadav was involved in protests against the panchayat system as far back as 1975. He was involved in the 1856 student protests and was arrested in Biratnagar and was imprisoned for fourth months. He was also arrested in 1985 at Kathmandu and imprisoned for a year for participating in a Satyagraha organized by Nepali Congress. Yadav joined the CPN (Unified Marxist–Leninist) in 1991 and contested for the House of Representatives from Sunsari 4 in the same year. He gained 8,672 votes but finished a distant second. He served as the district leader of Sunsari and Morang district during his time in the party. He resigned from the party in 1997. Madheshi Jana Adhikar Forum, Nepal He founded the Madheshi Jana Adhikar Forum in the mid-1990s along with Nepali Congress leader Jay Prakash Gupta as a non-governmental organization that advocated for Madheshi rights. After leaving CPN (UML) Yadav had become an alternate central committee member of CPN (Maoist). In February 2004 Yadav was arrested in New Delhi along with Maoist party members Matrika Yadav and Mohan Baidya. He was released after two months while the others were handed over to Nepalese authorities in 2006.