It was a whirlwind 48 hours that began with thousands of young people taking to the streets of Nepal's capital, Kathmandu, in protest and ended with iconic government buildings smouldering and the country's prime minister cast out.
The dizzying speed with which the country's younger generation toppled Nepal's ruling government, using social media sites such as TikTok and Discord to organize, is still something those who were calling for change are processing.
"It wasn't planned to be a revolution," said Tanuja Pandey, a 25-year-old lawyer and environmental activist.
She was involved in the protest and has taken on a key role in what began as a leaderless grassroots movement fuelled by anger against corruption and the country's ruling elite — but even she was caught off guard with how it ballooned.
"I think shocked is the right word to use," Pandey told CBC News. "It's traumatizing and painful, because we have lost many of our friends."
WATCH | How the unrest in Nepal began: Nepal’s parliament set on fire, PM resigns as protests spiral Duration 2:02 Nepal’s prime minister has stepped down with at least 22 people dead, the country’s parliament in flames and its main airport shut down during a violent revolt. The unrest started over a social media ban and grew into a broader anti-corruption protest.
Seventy-four people died in the protests: 61 demonstrators, three police officers and 10 inmates who tried to escape custody during the chaos, according to officials. More than 2,100 people were injured.
Two weeks after the protests erupted, the South Asian country already has a new interim prime minister, an election date set for early next year — and a judicial commission created to investigate the violence during the two days of clashes that toppled the government.
But even if the sense of accomplishment at holding the Nepalese government accountable comes tinged with regret at its price, Pandey said, it was "needed."
"I've been seeing the same faces in power all my life," she said.
Another protester, Sajan Shrestha, told CBC News the uncertainty about Nepal's future can be overcome.
"We can revolutionize this country better than our grandparents," said Shrestha, a 25-year-old freelance software developer in Kathmandu. "Everything about the [ruling system] should be dissolved, and a new generation can rise up to form a better country."
Anger against 'nepo kids'
The revolution began with calls to demonstrate, sparked by an unpopular government ban on 26 social media platforms that many saw as a means to stifle free speech.
But the underlying thread of the anti-corruption protests was deep anger and resentment at the disparity between the lives of working-class Nepalese youth and the children of politicians.
A viral movement calling out "nepo kids" exposed how some children of the ruling elite were flaunting their exotic vacations, luxury cars and fancy clothes.
One photo in particular, showing the son of a provincial minister posing beside a large stack of designer gift-wrapped boxes topped with a Santa hat, provoked widespread rage.
Many young people in Nepal, one of the poorest and most politically unstable countries in Asia, have to leave the country to find work, because the youth unemployment rate sits at more than 20 per cent.
Candles and graffiti are seen following the protests in Nepal that began following a ban on social media but soon became a platform for youth frustration with nepotism, corruption and lack of opportunity. (Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images)
Harnessing TikTok and Discord
The videos with hashtags #nepokids and #nepobabies spread quickly through TikTok, Instagram and Reddit in late August and early September.
TikTok was one of the few platforms not restricted by the ban and it became a key tool to mobilize protesters ahead of and on Sept. 8.
But after the violent protests prompted Nepal's army to take control of the streets and impose a curfew for several days, another social media site took centre stage.
WATCH | Nepal's PM resigns amid fiery protests: Fire rips through residence of Nepalese PM who quit amid protest Duration 0:12 Cameras captured a fire at the Kathmandu residence of KP Sharma Oli, who resigned as Nepal’s prime minister as anti-corruption, anti-government protests in the country escalated.
Discussions shifted mainly to Discord, a chat platform popularized by video gamers, which became a hub where students debated who should be the country's interim leader.
They eventually settled, in an online vote, on Sushila Karki, a former chief justice of Nepal's Supreme Court.
At 73, Karki has built a reputation of being firmly opposed to corruption in the country.
Once Karki was sworn in, the popular Instagram account gen.znepal, which has been sharing updates on the protests, posted a celebratory message that spoke directly to the country's young people.
"Honorable PM Sushila Karki… SLAYYY 💅🏾," it read, using an emoji that signifies sass and self-confidence. (For GenZers, "slay" is a compliment.)
Another South Asian regime falls
Nepal's Gen Z protest is part of a trend that's hard to ignore in South Asia.
It's the third country in the region in the last four years to see violent protests overthrow the government, fuelled by a younger generation fed up with cronyism, corruption and a lack of economic opportunities.
In 2022, young protesters in Sri Lanka staged four months of protests over a teetering economy, succeeding in bringing down the dominant Rajapaksa political dynasty after crowds stormed the president's residence and forced him to flee.
Then, it was Bangladesh. Last year, students took to the streets for weeks of violent protests that ended up loosening then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina's grip, driving her to seek refuge in neighbouring India.
While each case is unique, there are some broad similarities, according to Paul Staniland, professor of political science at the University of Chicago and a non-resident scholar with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's South Asia program.
People displaying Nepal's national flag burn tires during a demonstration to condemn the police's deadly crackdown on protesters in Kathmandu on Sept. 9, a day after demonstrations over social media prohibitions and corruption by the government began. The protests created a change in government, but left 74 people dead, 61 of whom were demonstrators. (Prabin Ranabhat/AFP via Getty Images)
Each of the three regimes were part of the same "perfect storm" that led to their downfall, including a sense of economic stagnation, felt most keenly among the younger generation, Staniland said, which, coupled with a political elite "seen as corrupt and ineffective, is a pretty bad combination."
An upsurge of anger in each country was powerful enough to bring down the ruling government, and social media played a key role in organizing the protests and quickly disseminating information about each government's initial heavy-handed response.
The army also came to the forefront in each case, as the only neutral body left with any clout to lead the countries out of a political vacuum.
"It's a reminder," Staniland said. "When push comes to shove and civilian governments crumble, militaries can be the last cohesive powerful actor still standing."
A way to manage the transition that's not without its dangers, however, such as military overreach.
"The next time there's a crisis, does everyone start calling up the army chief?" Staniland said.
So, what's next?
Pandey and others who've taken on leadership roles in Nepal's protests are now preoccupied with one question: now what?
Elections are set for early March. But Nepal is a country consistently plagued by political instability and has seen 17 governments since the monarchy was abolished in 2008.
Similar youth movements in neighbouring countries have not yet translated into fundamental social change, with Bangladesh still struggling to dismantle a system that's deeply entrenched as it tries to implement wide-ranging reforms.
Sri Lanka's economy is fragile and slowly recovering, but prosperity is still out of reach for many.
A graffiti reading 'Gen Z' is seen outside the Birendra International Convention Centre in Kathmandu on Sept. 13, 2025. Nepal's capital had just taken step toward normality after deadly anti-corruption protests, as daily life returned with a curfew eased and an interim prime minister sworn into office. (Getty Images)
The young Nepalese activist is also concerned about the hate being directed her way online.
"The things that keep us awake at night are the divisions [in the public discourse]," Pandey said, highlighting her worry that people are misinterpreting what the youth movement stands for.
For three generations of the Khadka family, who sat down to speak to CBC News at their home in eastern Kathmandu, there's also a mix of concern and relief that the ruling party is gone.
Matriarch Man Maya Khadka, 93, worried about the damage done to buildings, while her son Dhal Khadka, 58, said he was fretting that the core of the anti-corruption message the protesters were trying to highlight "might get overshadowed" by the uneasy situation Nepal now finds itself in.
But the youngest, 25-year-old Sangin Khadka, was full of hope about the ideals of the protest led by his generation.
"This is the message that we are able to send to the world – nothing is impossible."
[SRC] https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/nepal-youth-protests-social-media-1.7642523
