News Desk :
Former Nepal prime minister KP Sharma Oli on Tuesday resigned from office and fled Kathmandu in a military helicopter to an undisclosed location, following two days of violent anti-corruption protests that have rocked the Himalayan nation.
“The PM has quit,” Oli’s aide Prakash Silwal confirmed to Reuters.
Visuals broadcast on local media showed the former premier being escorted out of Kathmandu by the army amid tight security, reports NDTV.
The resignation comes after youth-led demonstrations, spearheaded by Nepal’s “Gen Z protesters,” escalated into nationwide unrest.
Meanwhile, Nepal President Ram Chandra Poudel on Tuesday resigned from his post following violent protests against social media ban by the government.
This came shortly after KP Sharma Oli relinquished his post as Nepal’s Prime Minister amid severe anti-corruption protests.
A group of protesters forcefully entered the President’s official residence and set it on fire. They also looted various items from the presidential palace.
Demonstrators in Kathmandu have defied a curfew and broken into and set fire to the parliament building. They had earlier stormed the office of the Nepali Congress, the country’s largest party, and several prominent politicians’ residences.
Earlier, at least 19 people were killed and more than 100 injured during clashes with security forces.
The protests erupted after the government attempted to impose a sweeping ban on 26 social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X, sparking anger among young Nepalese.
The unrest quickly spiralled into direct attacks on political leaders. Protesters torched Oli’s private residence in Balkot, vandalised the home of President Ram Chandra Poudel in Bohoratpur, and set fire to the central office of the Nepali Congress party in Sanepa.
Residences of other ministers, including former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak and Communication Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung, former PM Pushpa, former home minister Ramesh Lekhak, and former PM Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife, also came under attack, with stone-pelting and arson reported across Kathmandu Valley.
In an escalation, demonstrators also stormed and set parts of Nepal’s Parliament building and the Supreme Court ablaze on Tuesday.The army issued a statement calling for calm and urging political dialogue, but did not give any other details.
The demonstrations began after the government blocked platforms, including Facebook, X and YouTube, saying the companies had failed to register and submit to government oversight.
But even after the sites came back online, the rallies continued, fuelled by anger over the deaths of protesters at the hands of police and growing frustration with the political elite in the nation wedged between China and India.
In particular, many young people are angry that the children of political leaders – so-called Nepo Kids – seem to enjoy luxurious lifestyles and numerous advantages while most youth struggle to find work.
With youth unemployment running at 20 per cent last year, according to the World Bank, the government estimates more than 2,000 young people leave the country every day to seek work in the Middle East or southeast Asia.
“I am here to protest about the massive corruption in our country,” said Bishnu Thapa Chetri, a student. “The country has gotten so bad that for us youths there is no grounds for us to stay.”
A young woman close to the camera wearing a shirt and tie appears to yell while carrying a flag, as others follow behind her in an apparent street post.
On Tuesday, local media and videos shared on social media showed protesters attacking the residences of the top political leaders in and around Kathmandu.
In addition to Oli’s private home, the houses set on fire included those of Paudel, Sher Bahadur Deuba, leader of the largest party Nepali Congress, Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak and leader of the Communist party of Nepal Maoist Pushpa Kamal Dahal.
The presidential palace and a building that houses the offices of the prime minister and several ministries were all torched. Thick smoke rose from the prime minister’s office building.
The mass protest and attack on parliament began as opposition to the ban on social media platforms but were fuelled by growing frustration and dissatisfaction against the political parties among the people who blame them for corruption.
A curfew was imposed in the capital and other cities, and schools in Kathmandu were closed, but several protests continued in the capital despite the measures.
Several widely used social networks, including Facebook, X and YouTube were blocked in the Himalayan nation last week after failing to comply with a new requirement to register and submit to government oversight.
Monday’s rallies against the ban swelled to tens of thousands of people in Kathmandu and crowds surrounded the Parliament building before police opened fire on the demonstrators.
