Nepal ex-PM KP Sharma Oli arrested in fatal Gen Z protest case

Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli has been arrested over deadly protest crackdown against Gen Z last year.

More than 70 people were killed and many of the demonstrators were shot by police during an uprising fuelled by a blatant ban on social media.

Later, it was morphed into a nationwide movement, aiming to topple the government over corruption and poor economic conditions.

Since the deployment of brutal force against Gen Zs, the families have been urging to hold officials accountable.

Moreover, the former home minister Ramesh Lekhak was also detained on Saturday after a panel meant to investigate the unrest recommended that both would be prosecuted for sheer criminal negligence. However, Oli, 74, and Lekhak, 62, have not been charged yet.

“They were arrested this morning and the process will move forward according to the law," Kathmandu Valley police spokesman Om Adhikari told newswire Agence France-Presse.

The arrest comes a day after Nepal’s newly appointed PM, 35-year-old rapper-turned politician Balen Shah, was sworn in.

Previously, the commission found the involvement of former police chief Chandra Kuber Khapung in a deadly crackdown and recommended the arrest of Khapung. However, Oli rejected the findings and called them “character assassination and hate politics.”

Oli’s lawyers also called his detention “unwarranted and illegal” at this point of investigation as the ex-PM is not fleeing or avoiding questioning.

Following the arrests, the newly appointed home minister Sudan Gurung took to Instagram and welcomed the detentions.

"No one is above the law... This is not revenge against anyone, just the beginning of justice," he wrote.

Oli resigned on September 9, but re-contested the election which was held on March 5, 2026.