Nepal’s Political Parties Take Different Positions On Gen-Z Uprising Days

Nepal’s Gen-Z uprising of September 8 and 9 last year is being remembered differently by the country’s political parties, reflecting sharp divisions over the movement’s causes, violence and political consequences. The protests ultimately brought down the government led by then Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, paving the way for an interim government, parliamentary elections on March 5 this year and the emergence of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) as the largest political party with nearly a two-thirds majority.

The first day of the movement was marked by protests over governance, accountability and other concerns, with authorities accused of using excessive force. Nineteen people died on September 8, while protest-related incidents over the two days resulted in 77 deaths. The following day witnessed widespread destruction of public and private property, including attacks on major government institutions such as Singha Durbar, the Supreme Court, the Prime Minister’s Office and the President’s Office.

Commercial properties were also targeted during the violence, including shopping centres belonging to the Bhat-Bhateni Group and hotels such as Hilton Kathmandu and Hyatt Regency Kathmandu. The government has estimated the overall damage from the unrest at more than NPR 84 billion. The contrasting nature of the two days has since shaped how political parties and their leaders have approached the movement’s first anniversary.

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The ruling RSP has largely focused on September 8 and the deaths of young protesters, portraying the day as a response to alleged misgovernance and excessive use of state force. RSP President Rabi Lamichhane honoured those who died and described the movement as a spontaneous uprising by a digitally connected younger generation concerned about corruption, institutional inefficiency, fundamental rights and limited opportunities. Home Minister Sudhan Gurung also criticised older political parties for remaining largely silent during the anniversary commemorations.

Opposition parties have placed greater emphasis on the destruction of September 9. Former Prime Minister Oli, whose CPN-UML was in power when the protests began, called for a thorough investigation into the violence and argued that the destruction represented a planned effort rather than an immediate reaction to the previous day’s deaths. Former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal also maintained that the original concerns of the Gen-Z protesters were genuine, including freedom of expression, good governance and accountability, but alleged that other elements deliberately hijacked the movement.

The differing political narratives have made the September 8 and 9 events a contested chapter in Nepal’s recent democratic history. Nepali Congress President Gagan Thapa paid tribute to those who died, while several major opposition leaders were largely silent during the first anniversary observances before issuing statements focused on the subsequent destruction. The continuing debate centres on how to distinguish the young protesters’ demands from the violence and destruction that followed, while determining responsibility for both the deaths and the attacks on state and private property.

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