On the night of Friday, September 12, the no-nonsense 73-year-old crusader against corruption, Sushila Karki — former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court — was sworn in as the interim Prime Minister of Nepal. Her ascent to the seat of power followed two days of intense negotiations between Nepalese President Ramchandra Paudel, Army Chief Ashok Raj Sigdel, and select representatives of the protestors, nicknamed “Gen-Z".

Affirmation Through Discord

Sushila Karki emerged as the unanimous choice of the Gen Z protest representatives. In a remarkable show of democratic engagement, ordinary Nepali citizens made smart use of technology by conducting a transparent poll on who should lead the country next.

Karki was the undisputed winner of the poll conducted on Discord — by September 10, the server had seemingly reached a consensus on Nepal’s next leader.

She subsequently met President Ramchandra Paudel and Army Chief General Ashok Raj Sigdel on September 11.

Dissolution Of House

After administering the oath of office to Karki late on September 12, the Office of the President issued a further statement: “The President has dissolved the House of Representatives…"

The statement also announced that elections have been scheduled for March 5, 2026.

Eight political parties of Nepal have protested the dissolution of the Parliament, terming it unconstitutional.

Interim Cabinet

Nepal’s interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki expanded her Cabinet on Monday, just days after assuming office, with the induction of three new ministers. According to officials at the Prime Minister’s Office:

Challenges Galore

Sushila Karki’s Cabinet faces several daunting challenges — restoring law and order, rebuilding the Parliament, the Supreme Court and other key buildings that were torched during the unrest, and reassuring the Gen Z protestors demanding change, alongside others worried that Nepal’s young democracy and constitutional framework could be derailed.

Two of her biggest tasks will be ensuring free and fair elections and bringing to justice those responsible for the recent unrest.

But what brings Sushila Karki to the helm of power? Below, I chronicle the recent chain of events that led to her appointment.

Here’s the story.

The Implosion

It all began on September 8, when tens of thousands of young people, most of them in their early twenties or in their teens, in school uniforms, came out to protest against corruption, nepotism, inequality, and large-scale unemployment, with the battle cry: “Ab Pujyo – Now it is enough."

Their anger was further fuelled by the government’s ban on social media platforms. The implosion looked spontaneous, but it had been in the making for decades.

Mayhem And Massacre

Rewind to Sunday, September 7. On that day, Prime Minister of Nepal KP Sharma Oli ridiculed the youth planning a major protest in Kathmandu the next day. He said: “By calling themselves Gen Z, protestors seemed to believe they could demand whatever they wanted." Fast forward to Tuesday. In less than 48 hours, Oli was gone with the wind.

In between, 19 innocent people were killed in police firing, which further inflamed the passion of the protestors. The very next day, protestors ran amok, torching and destroying Parliament, the Supreme Court, the offices and homes of major politicians, media houses, hotels, and other infrastructure. The combined toll from the clashes now stands at 72 dead and more than 1,300 injured.

In The Making For Decades

At first glance, the Gen Z uprising appears to be a sudden, spur-of-the-moment action, fanned........

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