Nepal’s former prime minister, KP Sharma Oli, was taken into custody on Saturday as police investigate whether he was negligent in failing to prevent dozens of deaths during Gen Z protests last September.
This week, a Nepali panel which investigated violence during the anti-corruption protests recommended that Oli, 74, be prosecuted for failing to prevent the crackdown on the protests.
At least 77 people were killed in the anti-corruption youth uprising on 8 and 9 September, which began over a brief social media ban, but tapped into longstanding fury over economic hardship. At least 19 young people were killed in a crackdown on the first day of protests.
The unrest led to Oli resigning.
Min Bahadur Shahi, a senior leader of Oli’s Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) said: “They took him from his residence this morning.”
Police spokesperson, Om Adhikari, confirmed the detainment of Oli and his home minister, Ramesh Lekhak.
Rapper-turned politician Balendra Shah was sworn in on Friday as prime minister after a winning the 5 March parliamentary elections.
The detentions come a day after Shah and his cabinet were sworn in after the first elections since the 2025 uprising that toppled Oli’s government.
The unrest spread nationwide the following day as parliament and government offices were set ablaze, resulting in the government’s collapse.
A Nepal government-backed report into the deadly uprising has recommended officials be prosecuted.
The report said that it was “not established that there was an order to shoot”, but alleged that “no effort was made to stop or control the firing and, due to their negligent conduct, even minors lost their lives”.
The newly appointed home minister, Sudan Gurung, who was a key figure in the protests, posted on Instagram: “No one is above the law … This is not revenge against anyone, just the beginning of justice. I believe now the country will take a new direction.”