Nepal’s PM Quits and Flees as his House is Burned Down by Protesters who also Chase Finance Minister Through Streets and Attack him Following Outcry over Social Media Ban
By KEVIN ADJEI-DARKO, IMOGEN GARFINKEL
Nepal’s Prime Minister has resigned and fled after protesters burned down his house and chased his finance minister through the streets before attacking him, following public fury over a social media ban.
Young Nepalis are leading angry protests across the country, with violence spreading in the capital and other cities.
After enraged crowds torched KP Sharma Oli’s home, a new video footage has shown how Bishnu Prasad Paudel was pursued and set upon by a mob through the streets of Kathmandu.
In the shocking clip, Paudel, 65, is seen sprinting down a road as dozens run after him. A protester coming from the other side leaps and kicks him, sending him crashing against a red wall.
The government official quickly gets up, stumbles, but starts running again before the video ends. Paudel, who doubles as the deputy prime minister of the country, has faced intense criticism since he began running Nepal’s economic affairs last year.
Meanwhile, Oli, 73, stepped down a day after one of the bloodiest crackdowns in years left at least 19 dead.
He had only begun his fourth term last year, following a coalition deal between his Communist Party and the centre-left Nepali Congress.
His departure came after three other ministers also resigned, even though the government had lifted the ban on social media. The country’s president, Ram Chandra Poudel, has now started the process of selecting a new leader.
Protestors set fire to the seat of government and other state buildings
KP Sharma Oli’s home is torched as protests broke out over his governance
Despite the ban being overturned, protestors still took to the streets, with some carrying firearms
The finance minister, who doubles as the country’s deputy prime minister, was kicked after getting chased by a mob
The restrictions had started on Friday when Nepal, home to 30 million people, blocked Facebook, YouTube and X, along with 26 other unregistered platforms.
The movement began on Monday as people demanded an end to the social media ban and called on the government to fight corruption. The demonstrations continued even after access to the apps was restored.
Videos circulating on TikTok, which was not banned, showed the contrast in the lifestyle of the kids of government officials and ordinary citizens.
Kathmandu police spokesman Shekhar Khanel said that many ignored a curfew on Tuesday. He said there were protesters in several parts of the city and spoke of ‘cases of fire and attacks’.
The curfew was imposed in the capital and other cities, and schools in Kathmandu were closed. Local reports and videos shared on social media showed protesters attacking the residences of the top political leaders in and around Kathmandu.
The houses set on fire included those of Sher Bahadur Deuba, leader of the largest party Nepali Congress, President Poudel, Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak and leader of the Communist party of Nepal Maoist Pushpa Kamal Dahal.
A private school owned by Deuba’s wife Arzu Deuba Rana, who is the current foreign minister, was also set on fire.
The mass protests and attack on parliament on Monday began as opposition to the ban on social media platforms, but were fueled by growing frustration and dissatisfaction against the political parties among the people who blame them for corruption.
‘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 back in the country.’
The then newly elected Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli greets after the oath of office in President residence in Kathmandu, Nepal, July 15, 2024
Some protestors were seen with weapons outside the Singhua Durbar palace
Protesters vandalise Nepalese congress party central office in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025
‘Punish the murders in government. Stop killing children,’ the protesters chanted while police used loudspeakers urging them to return home
Young Nepalis are leading angry protests across the country, with violence spreading in the capital
A picture of the former prime minister is tossed into a huge fire
‘Our demand and desire is for peace and end to corruption so that people can actually work and live back in the country,’ he said.
Several protests were reported Tuesday despite the indefinite curfew in the capital.
‘Punish the murderers in government. Stop killing children,’ the protesters chanted while police used loudspeakers urging them to return home.
The protesters’ anger turned toward the government led by Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli, who is increasingly becoming unpopular.
‘We are here to protest because our youths and friends are getting killed, we are here to seek that justice is done and the present regime is ousted. K.P. Oli should be chased away,’ said Narayan Acharya, who was among the protesters outside the battered wall of the parliament building Tuesday.
Protester Durganah Dahal said they needed to protest the deaths caused by police acting on behalf of the prime minister’s government.
‘As long as this government is in power, the people like us will continue to suffer,’ Dahal said. ‘They killed so many youths yesterday who had so much to look forward to, now they can easily kill us all. We protest until this government is finished.’
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.
His resignation came after protesters set fire to the homes of some of Nepal’s top political leaders in opposition to a social media ban that was lifted early Tuesday
Protesters burn vehicles and tires during a protest in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025
People stand beside a burned government vehicle in the aftermath of violent clashes in Kathmandu, Nepal, September 9
Smoke rises from the country’s parliament complex as protestors climb on top of its roof
A man carries a gun looted from the police while entering a government building
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. Nineteen people were killed.
‘Stop the ban on social media. Stop corruption, not social media,’ the crowds chanted, waving national flags. Monday’s rally was called the protest of Gen Z, which generally refers to people born between 1995 and 2010.
Seven of those killed and scores of the wounded were received at the National Trauma Center, the country’s main hospital.
‘Many of them are in serious condition and appear to have been shot in the head and chest,’ said Dr. Badri Risa. Families waited for news of their relatives while people lined up to donate blood.
Oli said in a statement he was forming an investigating committee to submit a report in 15 days and that compensation would be given for the lives lost and free treatment for the wounded.
On Tuesday, government buildings were not the only infrastructure to be attacked. Media companies were also targeted with Kantipur Publications, the country’s biggest media outlet, set on fire.
Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak also resigned at an emergency Cabinet meeting late Monday.
The violence unfolded as Nepal’s government pursues a broader attempt to regulate social media with a bill aimed at ensuring the platforms are ‘properly managed, responsible and accountable.’ The proposal has been widely criticised as a tool for censorship and for punishing government opponents who voice their protests online.
A demonstrator reacts at the Parliament complex during a protest against Monday’s killing of 19 people after anti-corruption protests that were triggered by a social media ban
A demonstrator sits on a chair holding a monitor and phone taken from Parliament
Protesters vandalise and burn down the Nepalese communist party office
Demonstrators attempted to break the outer wall of the parliament building
The bill includes asking the companies to appoint a liaison office or a point of contact in the country. Rights groups have called it an attempt by the government to curb freedom of expression and fundamental rights.
The registration requirement applied to about two dozen social networks widely used in Nepal.
Neither Google, which owns YouTube, nor Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, responded to requests for comment from The Associated Press. Elon Musk’s X platform also did not respond.
TikTok, Viber and three other platforms have registered and operated without interruption.
Nepal in 2023 banned TikTok for disrupting ‘social harmony, goodwill and diffusing indecent materials.’ The ban was lifted last year after TikTok’s executives pledged to comply with local laws, including a ban of pornographic sites that was passed in 2018.
Original source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15080077/Nepals-PM-quits-day-protests-social-media-ban-left-19-people-dead.html