In early September, after the nationwide protest, Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli was forced to step down after his administration was labeled and blamed for the bloodiest political outbreaks in decades. Official security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets in order to disperse the crowds, including a few that had lit state buildings on fire. Records then confirmed the death toll of 72 individuals as search teams recovered bodies from governmental buildings affected by these anarchist actions. In addition to that, the latest data from the Health Ministry showed at least 2,113 recorded injuries from the involvement of violence in the protests. These protesters took to the streets in early September, initially rallying against corruption and seeking to hold the government accountable for its past political failures. Beyond the streets of Kathmandu, these protests developed into organized rallies through social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and even encrypted chat groups. Digitally native Gen Z protesters mobilized these platforms to create memes and short videos that made repression costly, where every strike became instant global content. Yet, when the government ordered the blocking of 26 social media platforms across Nepal to prevent the spread of hate speech and fake news, the frustration developed into a full-blown rage that was described as the people’s last straw. 

More Behind the Curtains

The essence of the Gen Z-led protest stands as an uprising effort to shake the Nepali government to its foundation. It serves as a confrontation of a political class that is still stuck in the 1990s, despite having undergone several reforms through its 1990 and 2006 “People’s Movement,” which opened multi-party politics and paved the way for the 2008 republic. Despite that, the years that followed showed Nepal’s political instability after it faced its third parliamentary alteration within two years since its last 2022 elections. This continuous political realignment is mainly caused by its politicians’ personal ambitions and the engine of an elite recycling through its mixed electoral system. This system serves to combine two pools of seats: the candidate with the most votes and a separate vote given to parties based on their share of the national vote. The electoral system generally reduces the “winner takes all” reality in the parliament; however, the system opens an opportunity for parties with organizational strength to dominate the remaining seats. These major parties, often filled with old elites, risk the parliament members’ accountability. While local representatives have area duties, party-list representatives are more likely to become loyal to their party. As a result, from the Nepali people’s point of view, even after 15 years of monarchy abolition, they are still confronted with the same power blocs trading patronage deals and cabinet seats, only more democratically rebranded. 

The build-up of frustration did not occur overnight; the Nepali government has faced protests since mid-2025 after its multiple controversial policies, including its latest additional 2% luxury tax and 13% VAT on jewelry, which risk jeopardizing small artisans’ businesses. This tax hike is deemed insensitive by the people, considering Nepal’s 12.5% high-standing unemployment and failure to generate sufficient jobs, especially for its younger workforce. Nepal’s politicians have long faced allegations of corruption, centering debates on how much of the public money is spent on development and how the remainder is used to fund the lavish lifestyles of their families. Resultantly, as several videos and photos on social media platforms exposed the privileged lifestyles of elite children and Nepali politicians getting richer, the people’s resentment of poverty rose. The economic disparity and this condition explain why protesters are demanding a thorough investigation of these politicians’ property and even the transfer of the assets of these elites to public ownership.

Youth-Driven Protests

In September, Nepal’s Gen Z, energized by digital acceleration, took to the streets against their government. Indonesian youths have similarly used digital platforms as a resistance medium in large-scale protests. Hashtags such as #ResetIndonesia and #ReformasiDikorupsiLagi reached trending charts, implying how digitalization has brought this information across the nation and even worldwide without any single coordination into political awakening. The same goes for Nepali youths, with the #NepoKids and #NepoBaby hashtags trending a few weeks before the protests even began. Digitalization and access to media drew attention to the country’s inequality and life contrast between the elites and the ordinary people. Furthermore, interestingly, Indonesians formed chat groups to share gathering points, logistics, and first aid information with protesters in addition to livestreaming their protest to draw a larger crowd. Nepali people, on the other hand, including many in the diaspora, creatively voted for an interim prime minister through an online poll on Discord, a platform primarily used by gamers, not through physical or electoral ballots. As a whole, youth-driven protests and the rise of digitalization prove how networked movements create horizontal online networks that outpace traditional protests’ structure.

At this moment, with the resignation of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and the newly pledged Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki, there are many discussed potential possibilities on Nepal’s governance; it is either a rejuvenated democratic culture or deeper crackdowns if elites co-opt its committee. In the past, the post-2006 work-in-progress democracy was a failure with its deeply flawed system that ignited the people’s disappointment, but it is undeniable that it has laid a foundation for a more inclusive and participatory republic. As Prime Minister Karki states the government’s commitment to raise the quality of the people’s lives and the transparency in its work, the next few months will decide whether this is a momentary statement made in the midst of an outburst or the birth of a new democracy. If Nepal’s Gen Z unsuccessfully turns this protest into a permanent reset, the old guard will simply rebrand monarchy as democracy again.