A Youth-Led Political Revolution in Nepal

By Laura Torres

In Kathmandu earlier this month, a massive youth-led protest took over the streets as a response to the alleged corruption circling the country due to a social media ban. This ban includes 26 social media platforms, with the inclusion of Whatsapp and Instagram, due to a supposed failure to meet a deadline to register with Nepal’s ministry of communication and information technology. The youth protest consisted of individuals climbing the walls of the parliament and facing tear gas, live bullets and water cannons.  

“Among the biggest targets of their ire were the allegedly wealthy children of the nation’s political elite.” (Financial Times). 

Up to this date, almost 200 people are believed to have been injured due to conflicts with the police in Nepal and 22 have been found dead. Protestants continued the movement by setting fires to the parliament building, the Nepali Congress Party and home of the former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. (BBC). Whilst the ban was the catalyst for the unrest, “protesters are also channeling a more deep-rooted dissatisfaction with the country's authorities.” (BBC).                             

Following the protests, General Ashok Raj Sigdel, Nepal’s army chief, issued a statement accusing demonstrators of taking advantage of a current crisis by setting fire to public and private property. Furthermore if this unrest continues Sidgel declared "all security institutions, including the Nepal Army, are committed to taking control of the situation." In an attempt to put an end to the chaos, Sidgel encouraged protestors to engage in dialogue to find a solution, as this was recorded as Nepal’s worst unrest in decades. 

The country finds itself in deep political chaos. Kathmandu mayor Balen Shah, however, has openly supported the protest and has been making appeals for restraint from his social media account. The future of the nation is now being decided with more than 100,000 citizens meeting regularly in a virtual chat room to debate the country’s future. (New York Times) After the government collapsed on Tuesday, September 9, “the military [has] imposed a curfew across the capital, Kathmandu, and restricted large gatherings.” (New York Times) 

Due to such a moment of chaos, citizens from all over Nepal have taken this issue to Discord in an attempt to enact the digital version of a national convention. According to a content creator in Kathmandu, Sid Ghimiri, “The Parliament of Nepal right now is Discord,” (New York Times) Furthermore, Gez Z activists Nirjala Regmi said suspicions about the lavish lives of political “nepo babies” where the early driver of the demonstrations, however no one anticipated things would go this far.” (Financial Times) 

Works Cited

Baskar, Pranav. “Nepal's Social Media Ban Backfires as Politics Moves to a Chat Room.” The New York Times, 11 September 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/world/asia/nepal-protest-genz-discord.html. Accessed 14 September 2025.

Schipani, Andres. “Youthful anger at political 'nepo babies' drives Nepal protests.” Financial Times, 10 September 2025, https://www.ft.com/content/be1cdc26-dc5f-4001-a3ce-27bb1d70ee73. Accessed 14 September 2025.

“Why GenZ has taken over the streets in Nepal.” BBC, 10 September 2025, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crkj0lzlr3ro. Accessed 14 September 2025.