Protesters on violent Gen Z protests in Nepal

A sense of unease prevails in Nepal on a day when violent protests marred the capital.

Eyewitnesses said that the public rage was not due to a ban on social media, but due to an alleged police firing on unarmed youth and children between the ages of 10 and 28 years as they protested peacefully on September 8 against corruption in the government and against the social media ban.

Nepal protests: Updates on September 9, 2025

“This is a national movement now. It is not just the Gen Z, but even their parents and others who have taken to the streets. There is no limitation on the generation participating in the protest anymore. Why did they have to fire on innocent children and young people when they were protesting peacefully? That is what led to a trigger. The internet was never banned in Nepal. It was only YouTube, Facebook and Twitter (X) which were not working. TikTok was also not banned,” said Vinayak Adhikari, a 25-year-old health professional in Kathmandu (name changed to protect identity).

He said that the Army had taken over the security on Tuesday night (September 9, 2025). “Things look fine now. But we don’t know what will happen tomorrow. Let me also tell you, the Gen Z did not cause vandalism. There were some outside elements which led to violence and vandalism. Many of the Gen Z protesters were themselves caught off guard. Their demand was the resignation of the Prime Minister and Home Minister, as well as addressing the issue of rampant corruption, along with the lifting of the ban on certain social media platforms. All the core demands seem to have been met now,” he said, refusing to reveal his name.

He claimed that the protests lost track and did not go as planned. “There are several instances of vandalism, and we don’t know who did them. There is fire in our Supreme Court, the President’s office, and major government offices have been vandalised. That was not our intention. Some people went on a rampage, and the situation went out of hands,” he claimed.

“They killed 20 innocent lives. There were children in school uniforms. How is that okay? What was their fault? They were only protesting peacefully,” he said.

Social and political activist Ranju Darshana, who has been trying to return to Kathmandu at the earliest opportunity, cutting short her ongoing U.S. visit, said she has been in touch with everyone by phone.

Speaking with The Hindu from California, she said, “The Nepali politicians’ children have been leading a lavish life. Several videos exposing this lavish lifestyle went viral on TikTok. Anger has been mounting against widespread corruption in the country. The protests were peaceful on September 8. The demand was primarily against corruption. But once the school kids were shot, things quickly went out of hand. I have never seen Nepali people get so violent. But the question being asked is, when the police were asked to use rubber bullets, why did they use the real ones? I will fly back to Kathmandu tonight. In these turbulent times, I want to be back in my country, with my own people.”