Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" was on Monday sworn in as the Prime Minister of Nepal for a third time, a day after President Bidya Devi Bhandari appointed him as the new premier.

The 68-year-old former guerrilla leader was appointed as the country's new prime minister after he submitted a letter to the president showing the support of 169 members in the 275-member House of Representatives.

Prachanda took the oath of office and secrecy from President Bhandari at an official ceremony at Shital Niwas.

Born in Dhikurpokhari of Kaski district near Pokhara on December 11, 1954, Prachanda remained underground for almost 13 years. He joined mainstream politics when the CPN-Maoist adopted peaceful politics, ending a decade-long armed insurgency.

He led the decade-long armed struggle from 1996 to 2006 that ultimately ended with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in November 2006.

The Nepali Congress is the largest party with 89 seats in the House of Representatives while CPN-UML and CPN-MC have 78 and 32 seats, respectively.

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