KATHMANDU, MAY 27
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has held former prime minister KP Sharma Oli primarily responsible for the September 2025 Gen Z protest violence that left 76 people dead, recommending legal action against him along with two former ministers and several senior security officials for human rights violations.
The recommendation follows a detailed investigation by a six-member NHRC committee led by Commission Member Lilli Magar Thapa, which was endorsed in the commission's 177th meeting chaired by NHRC President Top Bahadur Magar.
According to the report, the protests that began peacefully at Maitighar Mandala escalated into widespread violence on September 8–9, 2025, resulting in 76 deaths involving protesters, civilians, police personnel and detainees across multiple incidents.
The commission found that 42 protesters and civilians were killed on September 8 in Kathmandu's Baneshwar area after security forces opened fire, with forensic evidence indicating the use of live 5.5 mm and 7.7 mm bullets. A further 23 people died during hospital treatment, while three police personnel were beaten to death on September 9 and 21 others were killed in arson incidents nationwide. Ten detainees were also killed on September 10 during alleged escape attempts from correction centres and prisons.
The NHRC termed the social media restriction imposed under a 2023 directive unconstitutional and recommended action against former communications minister Prithvi Subba Gurung for implementing the measure.
The commission, however, said the demonstration was later infiltrated by organised groups that incited violence and directed protesters toward restricted government areas. It also cited evidence of social media mobilisation, including calls to bring Molotov cocktails and circulation of AI-generated images depicting attacks on state institutions before the violence erupted.
The commission has held former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli primarily responsible for the human rights violations, stating that his refusal to lift the unconstitutional social media ban was the direct trigger for the protests, and that he failed to authorise army deployment through the National Security Council despite a complete breakdown of law and order. The report also recommended holding former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak accountable for failures in security coordination and command during the unrest.
The commission further recommended departmental action against: then-Additional IGP Dan Bahadur Karki; Deputy IGP Om Bikram Rana; Senior SP Bishwa Adhikari; then-Additional APF IGP Narayan Prasad Paudel; APF SP Jeevan KC; then-CDO of Kathmandu Chhabilal Rijal; then-National Investigation Department Director Krishna Khanal; and all field commanders deployed in the Baneshwar and parliament area on September 8. Three retired officers, former IGP Chandra Kuber Khapung, former APF IGP Raju Aryal, and former NID Chief Munaraj Thapa, were recommended for action and barred from future government appointments.
The investigation found that police lacked basic crowd control equipment , helmets, face shields, body armour, bulletproof vehicles, water cannons, and that this inadequacy contributed to the escalation to lethal force.
The NHRC also questioned the delayed deployment of the Nepal Army, noting that soldiers were mobilised only late on September 9 after major government buildings, including parliament and the Supreme Court, had already been attacked and set on fire. The commission found the Army's explanation, that no order had been received from the Council of Ministers, inconsistent with evidence that the Army deployed at 10 PM without such an order, and that the Army garrison already stationed inside Singha Durbar made no apparent effort to defend the building. The commission directed the government to address the Army Chief and the commanders stationed at Singha Durbar and Shital Niwas regarding their failure to protect national assets and citizens' human rights.
The commission recommended new legislation to prosecute human rights violations committed during the incident. The new law, the commission recommended, should provide for up to six months imprisonment or a Rs 300,000 fine or both; trial in a special court; a five-year ban on standing for election or appointment to public office; a three-year bar on administrative responsibilities; and a three-year travel ban. Pending enactment of the law, the commission directed that all named individuals currently holding any public position be suspended for at least six months.
The commission recommended that the government provide free lifetime medical treatment to all injured who remain under treatment; ensure employment or self-employment for at least one family member of each deceased; provide disability support for life to those left permanently disabled; and provide compensation to families of the 21 killed in arson on September 9, including the 12 still unidentified.
For institutional reforms, the commission recommended that Nepal enact clear legal provisions on army deployment in internal disturbances; strengthen coordination between the National Investigation Department, APF, and Nepal Police; review the Local Administration Act 2028 regarding crowd control authority; and provide adequate equipment and human rights-based crowd management training to police riot units.