Nepal’s Parliament Torched as PM Oli Resigns Amid Gen-Z–Led Anti-Corruption Unrest

Nepal plunged into its worst political crisis in years on Tuesday as protesters stormed and set parts of the parliament complex ablaze shortly after Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli announced his resignation. The unrest, driven largely by Gen-Z demonstrators furious over corruption and a widely criticized social-media ban, spread across Kathmandu and other cities despite an indefinite curfew.

Authorities and local media reported that crowds breached security perimeters around key state sites, torching sections of the federal parliament precinct and other government offices. The capital’s international airport temporarily halted operations as violence flared and security forces struggled to regain control. Hospitals treated hundreds of people for injuries amid running street battles, with the confirmed death toll from Monday and Tuesday’s clashes at least 19, according to multiple outlets. The army was deployed to reinforce the police, and the president appealed for calm.

Oli’s resignation followed days of escalating demonstrations ignited by the government’s decision to block major social platforms, a move critics called an attack on free expression that masked deeper grievances over graft and misgovernance. Facing intensifying pressure after lethal clashes and widespread arson, the government reversed course and lifted the social-media ban, but protests continued as crowds demanded a wholesale political reset.

The scenes of celebration and anger, young protesters waving flags, filming on phones, hauling out furniture from ransacked offices, and posing amid flames underscored a generational revolt against entrenched elites. Political parties began urgent talks over an interim arrangement as opposition groups sought to channel the unrest into an orderly transition. With public trust frayed and institutions damaged, analysts warned that Nepal’s fragile democracy faces a volatile period in which swift, credible steps against corruption will be critical to restore order.

Sources: Reuters, Associated Press, Al Jazeera, The Washington Post, The Economic Times, Times of India