Muhib Rahman
In September 2025, tens of thousands of young protesters poured into the streets of Kathmandu and stormed Nepal’s Parliament. They were furious about entrenched corruption and opposed recent attempts to clamp down on free speech and dissent through a social media blackout. Although the authorities killed numerous demonstrators, the uprising forced the resignation of Nepalese Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli and the installation of an interim government. Nepal, however, is only the latest example of a broader trend in South Asia. In 2024, a youth-led uprising ended the 15-year rule of Sheikh Hasina as prime minister of Bangladesh. Sri Lanka witnessed repeated waves of mass demonstrations, most dramatically in 2022, resulting in the ouster of a corrupt government. And in the Maldives, discontent over corruption, democratic backsliding, and polarizing foreign entanglements have led to similar protests demanding political change.
The uprisings across the region stem from domestic grievances, but that isn’t the whole story. For years, India has embraced the notion that it is the world’s largest democracy. It has championed liberal values and accepted the role—bestowed by the United States—of the Indo-Pacific’s democratic linchpin. Yet when it comes to dealings in its own neighborhood, India has often behaved in decidedly illiberal ways, propping up autocratic regimes and meddling in the affairs of other sovereign countries. New Delhi has treated democratic ideals and human rights as expendable whenever its own strategic interests are at stake.
The United States, wary of alienating its key Indo-Pacific partner, rarely challenges India on how it manages its backyard. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter announced that the United States would defer to India in most matters to do with South Asia. Every U.S. administration since has echoed that policy of deference. New Delhi has propped up neighboring governments by bankrolling them, lobbying the West on their behalf, or deploying its security forces. In return, Washington has often stayed silent about any indiscretions it sees, retreating from the promotion of democracy when such an effort might clash with India’s preferences.
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