On 4th September 2025, Nepal imposes a strict ban on various social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and many others, resulting in mass protests led by the youth of the country. This ban followed after the cabinet directive given on 25th August 2025, by the Nepali Government, which issued a notice to all the social media companies engaged in the country to register locally under the “Directive on Regulating the use of Social Media, 2023” with a 7-day deadline. After the expiration of the tenure, the authorities imposed the ban. The officials stated that false social media accounts used to spread hate speech, fake news, and commit fraud were the key reasons for the restrictions and the ban.
8th September, 2025 – as per multiple reports, the week after the ban, the mass protests had turned into clashes of blood and violence, youth of the country and organisers of the protests were calling this a ‘demonstration by Gen-Z’ against the corruption of the Government, Lack of economic opportunities and the recent social media ban. According to Reuters, 19 people have already been killed, with more than 100 being injured, including 28 police personnel receiving medical aid.
The authorities fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protestors to deter them from entering the Parliament. Kathmandu, being the centre of the protests, also includes Dang, Butwal, and Pokhara. The protesters were seen carrying placards with various slogans like “people’s money, people’s right”, “Democracy dies when Leadership Never Retires”, “Stop Ghosting Democracy”, and many others. As a result of the increasing violence, the Chief District Officer of the Kathmandu District, Chhabilal Rijal, under Section 6 of the Local Administration Act, issued a curfew from 12:30 pm to 10 pm, which prohibits movements, gatherings, and demonstrations in various areas of the Kathmandu District.
9th September 2025, according to the reports of The Kathmandu Post, the protestors also targeted various residences of political leaders and ministers located near the Kathmandu Valley and other regions, where they were seen hurling stones and setting the property on fire. They allegedly set the residence of the Communication and Information Technology Minister on fire, and additionally pelted stones at the Bhaisepati residence of Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel. Despite local measures to prevent the attacks, the residences of the leaders are under security threats. The protestors also attacked and set fire to the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s private residence in Balkot, Bhaktapur, and the attack came the day after the police opened fire on demonstrators on Monday.
As a result of the mass protests, the Nepalese Government has decided to lift the ban on social media platforms. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Oli called a meeting of all political parties, saying violence is not in the interest of the nation, “we have to resort to peaceful dialogue to find solutions to any problem”. Yet the protestors were unedified as reported by Reuters, one of them said, “We are still standing here for our future, we want this country to be corruption-free so that everyone can easily access education … a bright future”. In another email sent to a news agency, the person highlighted the social media posts glorifying the luxurious lives of the corrupt politicians and civil servants,” for which the government responded by banning all the platforms.
In a joint statement by the embassies of Australia, Finland, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, Norway, Germany, and the U.S. in Nepal, the countries said that they were saddened by the violence and urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint, avoid further escalation and ensure fundamental rights are protected.
