KP Sharma Oli arrested: Nepal’s former PM & Home Minister detained over Gen Z protest 'September massacre'
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "KP Sharma Oli arrested: Nepal’s former PM & Home Minister detained over Gen Z protest 'September massacre'")
Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli (L), new Prime Minister Balendra Shah (R) Photograph: (Combination created using images from AFP and ANI)
Former PM KP Sharma Oli has been arrested over a deadly protest crackdown that killed dozens. What led to these arrests?
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Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli has been arrested along with ex-home minister Ramesh Lekhak over their alleged role in a deadly crackdown on protesters last year, police confirmed on Saturday. "They were arrested this morning, and the process will move forward according to the law," said Kathmandu Valley police spokesman Om Adhikari. The arrests come just a day after a new government led by Prime Minister Balendra Shah was sworn in, following elections held after the 2025 uprising that forced Oli out of power.
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The crackdown that sparked outrage
The case centres on the protests of September 8 and 9, when a youth-led anti-corruption movement erupted across the country. What began as anger over a brief social media ban quickly escalated into a wider expression of frustration over rising prices, unemployment and governance issues.
At least 77 people were killed during the unrest. On the first day alone, at least 19 young protesters died when security forces moved to disperse crowds. By the next day, protests had spread nationwide. Government buildings and parliament offices were set on fire, and the unrest eventually led to the collapse of the Oli administration.
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‘No one is above the law': Findings of the investigation
Sudan Gurung, the newly appointed home minister and a prominent figure in the protest movement, said the action was part of a broader push for accountability. “No one is above the law,” Gurung said in a social media post. “This is not revenge against anyone, just the beginning of justice.”
A government-backed inquiry into the violence recommended prosecuting Oli and several other officials. The report stopped short of confirming that there was a direct order to open fire. But it pointed to what it described as a failure at the top. It said that it was "not established that there was an order to shoot", but said that "no effort was made to stop or control the firing and, due to their negligent conduct, even minors lost their lives".
