Nepal picks new interim prime minister

Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki has been appointed Nepal’s interim prime minister after widespread protests against corruption and the government’s ban on social media, which left at least 51 people dead and more than 1,300 injured.

Nepali President Ram Chandra Paudel announced the appointment on Friday after dissolving parliament and setting elections for March 2026. The decision followed negotiations between the president, representatives of the country’s ‘Generation Z’ protest movement, and the chief of the army, General Ashok Raj Sigdel, as the military effectively took control of the capital Kathmandu and enforced a curfew.

Karki, 73, is Nepal’s first woman to become interim prime minister and is widely known for her stance against corruption. Between 2016 and 2017, she served as chief justice – the only female to have held this post. In 2017, some lawmakers tried to impeach her on accusations of bias, but the attempt quickly stalled due to a public backlash and a Supreme Court intervention. Karki stepped down when she reached the mandatory age limit of 65.

Mass demonstrations erupted in early September as young Nepalis protested against politicians’ children flaunting their wealth online while the country struggled with poverty and youth unemployment above 20%.

After the government moved to ban social media networks, protests escalated, resulting in violent clashes between demonstrators and police, who reportedly used not only tear gas and water cannons, but also live ammunition to disperse the crowds. The protests culminated on Tuesday when activists set the national parliament on fire, and the country’s former Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli was forced to resign.

Karki has not yet issued a statement on her appointment or outlined her immediate agenda. However, Nepal’s southern neighbor India welcomed the news.