Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, as Gen Z protesters defied curfews to set fire to the parliament building and homes of senior political leaders following Monday’s deadly crackdown that killed 19 people.
President Ram Chandra Poudel accepted Oli’s resignation and appointed him to lead a caretaker government until a new one is in place, though it remained unclear what power he would wield or even where he was. The president, who serves as the ceremonial head of state, made a public appeal to protesters to come forward for dialogue to find a peaceful resolution.
Sources told local media that Oli has placed a private Himalaya Airlines aircraft on standby and may attempt to leave for Dubai citing medical treatment.
The crisis began on Monday, September 8, 2025, when thousands of Gen Z activists gathered at Maitighar in Kathmandu to protest the government’s ban on 26 social media platforms including Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and YouTube. The government had blocked the social media platforms after they failed to register with authorities by a September 3 deadline under new regulations requiring companies to establish local offices and compliance mechanisms.
Police opened fire on protesters who tried to breach parliament premises, killing 17 people in Kathmandu and two in Itahari city. Dr Badri Rijal from the National Trauma Centre said many victims were in serious condition with gunshot wounds to the head and chest. Families queued outside hospitals to donate blood as medical facilities struggled with the casualties.
The deadly response triggered international condemnation. The UN Human Rights Office said it was “shocked” by the deaths and demanded a transparent investigation. “We have received several deeply worrying allegations of unnecessary or disproportionate use of force by security forces,” spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said.
Amnesty International called the police response a “grave violation of international law,” stating: “The use of lethal force against protesters not posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury is a grave violation of international law.”
India expressed being “deeply saddened by the loss of many young lives” and urged restraint. Embassies of Australia, Finland, France, Japan, South Korea, UK, Norway, Germany and the US issued a joint statement urging “maximum restraint.”
The government reversed the social media ban on Tuesday morning, September 9. Communications Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung announced that the platforms were working again, but the gesture failed to stop the protests. “We have withdrawn the shutdown of the social media. They are working now,” Gurung told Reuters.
Instead, protests escalated dramatically on Tuesday, September 9. Hundreds of protesters broke into the parliament complex and set the building on fire, with smoke continuing to rise from a wing of the building. Videos verified by international media showed demonstrators dancing and chanting around fires at the entrance, with all windows inside the building smashed. Motorbikes circulated around the compound as protesters carried away plants from gardens and paintings from the interior. Graffiti and anti-government messages were spray painted on the building’s exterior, including one that read: “you took the wrong fight.”
The protesters systematically targeted residences of top political leaders. Houses belonging to President Ram Chandra Poudel, Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak, former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and Communications Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung were set on fire.
Demonstrators also attacked Oli’s private residence in Balkot, Bhaktapur, and vandalised the central office of the Nepali Congress party in Sanepa. They pelted stones at Deputy Prime Minister Bishnu Paudel’s house and set fire to a private school owned by Foreign Minister Arzu Deuba Rana. The presidential palace, the prime minister’s official residence, and the building housing the prime minister’s office and several ministries were torched, with thick smoke rising from government buildings.
Videos shared on social media showed protesters attacking Nepali Congress party leader Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife Arzu Rana Deuba, the current foreign minister. Both appeared to be bleeding in the footage, while one video showed the party leader being helped to safety.
Local media reported that the Nepali Army evacuated several ministers from their residences using helicopters as the situation worsened.
The escalating violence forced the closure of Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport due to smoke from fires set by protesters affecting flight safety. Civil Aviation Authority spokesperson Gyanendra Bhul told CNN that the airport was closed “with immediate effect.” Air India cancelled multiple Delhi-Kathmandu flights on Tuesday. “In view of the current situation prevailing in Kathmandu, we are closely monitoring the situation and will share further updates. At Air India, the safety of our passengers and crew remains top priority,” an Air India spokesperson said.
Four ministers quit the government citing moral grounds following Monday’s deadly police firing. Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak resigned on Monday evening, taking “moral responsibility” for the deaths. Agriculture Minister Ramnath Adhikari, Water Supply Minister Pradeep Yadav, and Health and Population Minister Pradip Poudel resigned on Tuesday. Two Nepali Congress ministers said they could not remain in government after the harsh response to student protesters.
Following Oli’s resignation, protest organisers released what they called “non-negotiable demands” including dissolution of parliament, mass resignation of parliamentarians, suspension of officials who ordered the firing, and fresh elections. Protest leader Anil Baniya of organising group Hami Nepal said the movement would continue “indefinitely until our demands are met.” “We now have more of a duty to live up to the expectations of our friends who were murdered by the state,” Baniya said. “We need to topple this government, we demand mass resignation and we want them out.”
“We are here to protest because our youths and friends are getting killed, we are here to see that justice is done and the present regime is ousted,” said Narayan Acharya, who was among the protesters outside the parliament building on Tuesday. “K.P. Oli should be chased away.”
While the immediate trigger was the social media ban, protesters cited deeper frustrations over corruption and economic conditions. Many young people expressed anger that children of political leaders, dubbed “Nepo Kids,” enjoy luxury lifestyles while most youth struggle to find work. With youth unemployment running at about 20% last year according to the World Bank, the government estimates that more than 2,000 young people leave the country every day to seek work in the Middle East or Southeast Asia.
Another protester, student Bishnu Thapa Chetri, told reporters: “I am here to protest about the massive corruption in our country. The country has gotten so bad that for us youths there is no grounds for us to stay.”
The restrictions had affected platforms used by roughly 90% of Nepal’s population, with many small businesses relying on social media for commerce and millions of Nepalis abroad using the apps to communicate with families.
Oli’s resignation has created fresh political instability in Nepal, which has seen over a dozen governments since abolishing its monarchy in 2008. With no party holding a clear parliamentary majority, forming a new government may prove challenging.
The Nepali Army issued a statement calling for calm and urging political dialogue to prevent further loss of life and property. Curfews remain in effect across Kathmandu and other major cities, with schools closed and normal life disrupted. The government has promised an investigation within 15 days and compensation for victims’ families, but protesters have rejected these offers as insufficient.
