Nepal’s prime minister resigned Tuesday after protesters set fire to homes of the country’s top political leaders during violent demonstrations against a ban on social media platforms and government corruption.
The departure of Khadga Prasad Oli comes a day after police opened fire on the protesters, killing 19 in Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu.
“In view of the adverse situation in the country, I have resigned effective today to facilitate the solution to the problem and to help resolve it politically in accordance with the constitution,” Oli wrote in his resignation letter to President Ram Chandra Poudel, according to Reuters.
Poudel’s home was among those set on fire. Properties belonging to Sher Bahadur Deuba, the leader of the largest party in the Nepali Congress, Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak and Maoist Pushpa Kamal Dahal, the leader of the Communist Party of Nepal, were also targeted in the blazes.
Protesters vandalize the Nepali Congress Party office during protests in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP/Niranjan Shrestha)
Oli, 73, was sworn in last July for his fourth term in office.
In the hours leading up to his resignation Tuesday, he called for a meeting of political parties and said “we have to resort to peaceful dialogue to find solutions to any problem,” according to Reuters.
Nepal’s army said Oli’s resignation was accepted and shared a statement on X, adding: “We sincerely urge all citizens to exercise restraint to prevent further loss of life and property in this critical situation.”
Demonstrators are seen gathered outside Nepal’s Parliament building during a protest in Kathmandu on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Prabin Ranabhat/AFP via Getty Images)
Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak also resigned at an emergency Cabinet meeting late Monday.
The mass demonstrations and attack on parliament Monday – which was called the protest of Gen Z – began as opposition to the ban on social media platforms but were fueled by growing frustration and dissatisfaction against the political parties among the people who blame them for corruption, the AP reported.
Riot police use a water cannon on protesters outside in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (AP/Niranjan Shrestha)
“I am here to protest about the massive corruption in our country,” Bishnu Thapa Chetri, a student, told the news agency. “The country has gotten so bad that for us youths – there [are] no grounds for us to stay back in the country.”
