Nepal’s Gen Z protests have taken a violent and alarming turn, with clashes leaving 19 dead and over 300 injured, as per the Himalayan Times . Demonstrators, fuelled by growing anger, attacked former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife, Arju Rana Deuba.
While protestors have also targeted key government sites, including the Singha Durbar complex and Parliament, as well as private homes of senior politicians, resulting in widespread arson and vandalism. Many netizens are now drawing unsettling parallels, claiming Nepal is mirroring the recent unrest seen in Bangladesh in July 2024 that led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina regime, following a similar path of escalating political chaos. Let’s find out more.
Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s residence burnt down. He has stepped down from his post | Credit: X | @dwsamachar
Is Nepal turning into Bangladesh?
Nepal’s current Prime Minister KP Oli resigned on Tuesday, after two days of intense protests led by Gen Z activists. The unfolding crisis echoes the chaotic political takeover witnessed recently in Dhaka, raising concerns about Nepal’s democratic future.
If we look back at the protests that took place in Bangladesh last year, the situation looks quite similar. According to India Today, in July 2024, students in Dhaka took to the streets to protest against a new reservation policy in civil services that favoured the family members of those who were involved in Bangladesh’s 1971 freedom struggle.
As per critics, the policy was a clear example of nepotism, benefiting primarily supporters of Prime Minister Hasina’s Awami League and sparking widespread public outrage. Not only this, but protesters brutally attacked the former PM Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife amid Nepal’s anti-corruption protests.
Nepal’s Gen Z protest | Credit: X | @thePiggsBoson
Ex-PM Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife were attacked amid Nepal protests
During the ongoing violent anti-corruption protests in Nepal, visuals of former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba, being brutally attacked have surfaced on social media.
Video footage shows Deuba bleeding from the face following the attack. Authorities arrived later to evacuate the couple. The protests, driven by Gen Z activists, intensified as participants engaged in widespread arson and vandalism across Kathmandu and other regions.
2. Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Oli’s residence was set on fire.
Nepal Prime Minister KP Oli house is burnt down. pic.twitter.com/PJU32a6hkS
3. Ex-PM Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife were attacked.
5. Nepal’s Finance Minister was pursued on the street and assaulted by protesters with kicks and blows.
6. Protesters gather outside the Nepali Congress Party office in Kathmandu, which is engulfed in flames.
7. The Straw Hat flag emerges as a powerful emblem of resistance as Nepal’s Gen Z takes the lead in protests.
8. Sher Bahadur Deuba is bleeding.
10. Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba was punched.
12. Machine guns were deployed in the Baneshwor Area.