Ajit Kumar Singh
On September 8, 2025, student-led “Gen Z” protests broke out in Kathmandu after the government imposed a ban on multiple social media platforms. Protesters carried placards reading “Shut down corruption, not social media,” “Unban social media,” and “Youths against corruption,” making it clear that their anger was directed as much at corruption and misrule as at the ban itself. As the day progressed, demonstrators – most of them young – forced their way into the Parliament complex, breaking through barricades, setting fire to an ambulance, and hurling objects at riot police. By evening, Nepal had witnessed one of the deadliest crackdowns of its republican era: at least 19 people were killed and more than 300 injured.
In an effort to calm the situation, the government lifted the social media ban that night, and Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak resigned during an emergency Cabinet meeting. But these concessions failed to placate the demonstrators.
On September 9, protests spread across Kathmandu and other cities. Defying restrictions on public gatherings, students and youth returned to the streets chanting slogans such as “Don’t kill students,” “KP Chor, Desh Chhod” (Prime Minister K. P. Oli is a thief, quit the country), and “Take action against corrupt leaders.” Violence quickly escalated. Protesters set fire to government buildings, seized automatic rifles, and attacked the headquarters of the Nepali Congress Party, the residence of former Prime Minister (PM) Sher Bahadur Deuba, and the homes of several other senior politicians. The Parliament building itself was set ablaze. Ministers had to be evacuated by Army helicopters from their residences in Bhaisepati, as mobs torched officials’ homes, including that of a Cabinet Minister. The Army Chief, General Ashok Raj Sigdel, eventually advised Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to resign, warning that the military could only stabilize the country if he stepped down. Within hours, Oli quit. But the violence continued.
By September 12, police reported that at least 51 people had died in the unrest, including 21 protesters, three police officers, nine prisoners, and 18 civilians. More than 1,000 prisoners who had escaped from jail during the chaos were recaptured, but over 12,500 remained on the run. The Army imposed a nationwide curfew (later lifted on September 13) and took over law-and-order duties.
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