KATHMANDU: Former State Minister for Health Khadga Bahadur Basyal passed away on Friday.

He was the former president of the Nepal Dalit Association, a member of the Constituent Assembly in 2008 and 2013, former vice president of the Nepali Congress District Working Committee in Surkhet, and a central member of the Nepal Democratic Fighters’ Association.

Basyal died at his residence in Tatapani, Ward No. 3 of Birendranagar Municipality, Surkhet. He had been suffering from cancer.

Born in 1951, the late Basyal served in various leadership positions within the Nepali Congress and its sister organizations, playing a key role in organizational building and Nepal’s democratic movements.

Representing Surkhet Constituency No. 3, he was elected to both the first and second Constituent Assemblies, where he made significant contributions to constitution drafting.

Although his ancestral home was in Palpa, Basyal was born in Mumbai, India, to father Dev Bahadur and mother Manisara in 1951.

His father had fled to India at the age of 14 due to an inter-caste marriage, and Basyal was born during that time.

During the second Constituent Assembly, he served as a member of the Committee on Citizen Relations.

The Nepali Congress has said his passing is a loss of a senior and experienced leader.

Party President, Parliamentary Party leader, and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba expressed deep sorrow over his demise.