Nepal plunged deeper into crisis on Tuesday as Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned following days of violent anti-government protests over a social media ban and alleged corruption.
The unrest, which has already claimed at least 19 lives and injured hundreds, saw Oli’s private residence set ablaze and ministers airlifted to safety earlier on Tuesday. As the protests escalated, Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authorities closed the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on Tuesday.
Protesters defied curfews, torched government properties, and clashed with police, intensifying the crisis across the capital and beyond. Despite the curfew, young protesters took to the streets to vent their anger a day after one of the deadliest crackdowns in years.
The demonstrations, which began on Monday, demanding the government lift a social media ban and tackle corruption, reignited even after platforms were restored.
Kathmandu police spokesman Shekhar Khanal told AFP that several groups defied the curfew, with reports of fires and attacks in multiple areas. Protesters also targeted the properties of politicians and government buildings, according to AFP photographers and local media.
Prime Minister Oli, 73, has ordered a probe into the violence and on Tuesday said he will head all-party talks in a bid to bring about a "meaningful conclusion" to the violence. The Interior Minister Ramesh Lekhak resigned on Monday, according to a government statement, while two others quit on Tuesday, according to Nepali media.
"The social media platforms have been opened, which was among the Gen Z's demands," Minister for Communication Prithvi Subba Gurung told AFP, referring to young people aged largely in their 20s. "We are open to talk with the protesters."
Earlier on Tuesday, the country had imposed fresh curfew orders in an effort to thwart protests against the ban on social media and alleged corruption, the Kathmandu Post reported.
People were able to access their social media accounts again at midnight on Monday and Tuesday.
On Tuesday morning, young people started to assemble spontaneously near the parliament building in New Baneshwar, Kathmandu.
They did not bring any banners.
“Yesterday’s incident exposed the government’s failure. I came here to stand with the youths,” one of the participants was quoted as saying.
Due to security concerns, authorities have imposed a curfew in the Ring Road area of Kathmandu starting at 8.30 am (0245GMT) until further notice. Curfew orders have also been implemented in Lalitpur and Bhaktapur after Monday’s violent clashes.
In the wake of protests, Agriculture and Livestock Development Minister Ramnath Adhikari also resigned on Tuesday, criticising the government's authoritarian response to protesters.
In his resignation letter, Adhikari, condemned the violent suppression of peaceful protests, which he said shifted the country toward authoritarianism instead of democracy.
On Monday, Nepal deployed military after clashes between protesters and police over a social media ban and alleged corruption left 19 people dead. At least 347 people were also injured, with hospitals being overcrowded, and dozens remain in critical condition.
Officials were yet to issue a statement on casualties.
