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Nepal’s former prime minister arrested over alleged role in deadly protest crackdown
~newsnepalbalen shahkp sharma oli
www.theguardian.com 3 days agoTildes

Summary

Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli was arrested early on Saturday morning over his role in the deaths of dozens of people who took part in the gen Z protest that toppled his government last year.

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The arrests came less than 24 hours after Nepal’s new prime minister, Balendra Shah, and his cabinet were sworn into office. Shah, a former rapper turned politician known widely as Balen, won a landslide victory this month with a campaign that promised justice for the killings that took place during the gen Z uprising last year and to crack down on corruption.

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In the aftermath, there has been growing pressure for Oli and his home affairs minister, who are alleged to have ordered the police crackdown, to be held responsible for the deaths.

Newly appointed home affairs minister Sudan Gurung announced their arrests on social media. “No one is above the law. We have taken former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and former home minister Ramesh Lekhak under control,” Gurung said. “This is not revenge against anyone, it is just the beginning of justice.”

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Their detention comes after a government-backed report into the deadly uprising was leaked. The investigation had recommended that Oli, Lekhak and the chief of police at the time of the protests face a punishment of 10 years in prison for their alleged role in the crackdown.

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Shah’s election as prime minister, which saw him resoundingly defeat Nepal’s veteran leaders, was seen as a triumph of the gen Z protests and a rejection of the old political establishment, which had become tarnished with allegations of corruption.

The former rapper, who is a sharp dresser and rarely seen without his sunglasses, had released a new track on the eve of his inaugurations, in which he pledged to bring “unity” to Nepal.