''Mulkaji'' ( ne, मूलकाजी) was the position of head of executive of

Kingdom of Nepal The Kingdom of Nepal ( ne, नेपाल अधिराज्य), also known as the Gorkha Empire ( ne, गोरखा अधिराज्य) or Asal Hindustan ( ne, असल हिन्दुस्तान)(), was a Hindu kin ...

in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was equivalent to

Prime Minister of Nepal The Prime Minister of Nepal ( ne, नेपालको प्रधानमन्त्री) is the head of government of Nepal. The Prime Minister is the head of the Council of Ministers of Nepal and the chief adviser to the President of N ...

. There were 5 Mulkajis appointed between 1785 and 1804.

Meaning

''Mulkaji'' is formed from two words: ''Mul'' and ''Kaji''. ''Mul'' means ''Chief'', ''Key'' or ''Fundamental'' and ''Kaji'' is derived from Sanskrit word ''Karyi'' which meant ''functionary''. Altogether it means ''Chief Functionary'' or ''Executive Head of the State''.

History of the five Mulkajis

Abhiman Singh Basnyat

Dewan Kaji

Bamsa Raj Pande Vamsharaj Pande (a.k.a. Bamsa Raj Pande, Vansha Raj Pande, or Bangsha Raj Pande) ( ne, वंशराज पाँडे; translit. ''vaṃśarāja pām̐ḍe'') was a Nepalese politician, military officer and minister of state. He was a signifi ...

was beheaded on March 1785 on the conspiracy of Queen Rajendra Laxmi with the help of supporters including senior Kaji Swaroop Singh Karki. On 2 July 1785, Prince Regent

Bahadur Shah of Nepal Prince Bahadur Shah ( ne, बहादुर शाह) was the youngest son of King Prithvi Narayan Shah of modern Nepal. He became the regent of Nepal for a brief period after the death of his predecessor Queen Rajendra Laxmi of Nepal and acce ...

was arrested and on the eleventh day of imprisonment on 13 July, Queen Rajendra Laxmi died. Then onwards,

took over the regency of his nephew King

Rana Bahadur Shah Rana Bahadur Shah, King of Nepal ( ne, श्री ५ महाराजाधिराज रण बहादुर शाह देव) (1775–1806) was the King of Nepal from 1777 to 1799. In 1777, he succeeded to the throne after the deat ...

and the position of Chautariya while

Abhiman Singh Basnyat Abhiman Singh Basnet/Basnyat ( ne, अभिमान सिंह बस्न्यात) was first Commander-in-Chief of Unified Nepal."Regmi Research Series" Author:Mahesh Chandra Regmi Abhiman Singh became the first Commander in Chief of a U ...

was elected Mulkaji (Chief Kaji).

Kirtiman Singh Basnyat

In 1794, King

came of age and appointed

Kirtiman Singh Basnyat Kirtiman Singh Basnyat ( ne, कीर्तिमान् सिंह बस्न्यात) was Mul Kaji (Chief Minister) of the Royal Court of Nepal between 1794 and his death on 28 September 1801. He was a military commander of the Nepales ...

as Chief (''Mul'') Kaji among the newly appointed four Kajis though Damodar Pande was the most influential Kaji. Kirtiman had succeeded

as Chief Kaji.

Bakhtawar Singh Basnyat

Kirtiman was secretly assassinated on 28 September 1801, by the supporters of Raj Rajeshwari Devi and his brother

Bakhtawar Singh Basnyat Bakhtawar Singh Basnyat ( ne, बख्तावर सिँह बस्न्यात) was Mulkazi (Chief Kazi) of Nepal. Mulkazi Kirtiman Singh Basnyat who was backed by Queen Regent Subarna Prabha Devi, was secretly assassinated on 28 Sept ...

, was then given the post of Chief (''Mul'') Kaji.

Damodar Pande

Later Damodar Pande was appointed by Queen Rajrajeshwari as Chief Kaji.

Ranajit Pande

After the execution of Mulkaji Damodar Pande on March 1804, Ranajit Pande was appointed as Mulkaji (Chief Kaji) along with Bhimsen Thapa as second Kaji, Sher Bahadur Shah as Mul Chautariya and Ranganath Paudel as Raj Guru (Royal Preceptor). Later King

created the title of

Mukhtiyar Mukhtiyar ( ne, मुख्तियार) was the position of head of executive of Kingdom of Nepal between 1806 and 1843. It was equivalent to Prime Minister of Nepal. There were 7 Mukhtiyars appointed between 1806 and 1843. Meaning ''Mukhti ...

and assume full executive power of the state.

List of Mulkajis of Kingdom of Nepal

Controversial Mulkaji

Historian

Dilli Raman Regmi Dilli Raman Regmi ( ne, डिल्लीरमण रेग्मी) (17 December 1913 – 30 August 2001) was a scholar, iconic political figure and historian of Nepal. He dedicated his life to research, study, writing and politics. He was on ...

asserts that

Sarbajit Rana Magar Kaji Sarbajit Rana Magar ( ne, सर्वजीत राना मगर) or simply Sarbajit Rana was a Nepalese politician, minister and courtier in the Kingdom of Nepal. He became a prominent minister during the regency of Queen Rajendra Lax ...

was chosen as Chief Functionary. Historian Rishikesh Shah asserts that Sarbajit was appointed only a Kaji and was the head of the Nepalese government for a short period in 1778.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mulkaji Government of Nepal 1780s neologisms Government ministers of Nepal Positions of authority Political history of Nepal