Warning bells Nepal’s PM Oli ignored: Graft charges, weaponisation of agencies

Last week, the Oli Cabinet decided to ban 26 social media platforms including Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger where details of alleged political corruption were highlighted regularly.

But it was the government’s crackdown Monday on anti-corruption protesters, most below the age of 30, that triggered a chain of events, leading to Oli’s fall.

At least 20 people were killed, some in their school uniform, and over 400 injured as security forces, enforcing their writ, even entered hospitals, lobbing tear gas shells.

While Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak resigned owning “responsibility” after an emergency meeting Monday night, Information Minister and UML leader P S Gurung maintained there was no question of Oli stepping down. Clearly, Oli and his loyalists had no inkling of what the morning would bring.

Protesters celebrate standing at the top of the Singha Durbar, the seat of Nepal’s government’s various ministries and offices, after it was set on fire during a protest against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

In the rumble and tumble of Nepal’s politics, Oli, Sher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepali Congress and Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ of the CPN (Maoist Centre) had been taking turns to head the government each time equations shifted – two parties would come together and decide who would be in the Opposition.

All the top leaders enjoyed immunity, shielded from allegations of corruption under their watch. Oli would say publicly that he would “neither make money illegally nor allow anyone else to do it”.

But it was his appointment of Prem Kumar Rai, a former Home Secretary considered loyal to him, as chief of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) in 2020 – Oli was Prime Minister then – that raised eyebrows. There had been allegations about Rai’s alleged role in two big scandals that had rocked Nepal – the Bhutanese refugees scam and the case relating to the purchase of wide-bodied aircraft.

The refugee scandal involved providing fake Bhutanese refugee IDs to Nepali citizens to help them settle in the US. The other scandal had to do with the purchase of aircraft for state-run Nepal Airlines. There were allegations of commissions being paid to top leaders for the deal.

Rai’s loyalty to Oli made the CIAA a tool against his political rivals. As Prime Minister, Oli made drastic changes in the administrative system, bringing at least nine investigation agencies, from the intelligence department to revenue intelligence, directly under him, and using most against his rivals.

The GenZ protests, that led to Oli’s ouster, focused on these issues, digging up from social media countless photographs of lavish dining and extravagant activities of the wards of politicians, across party lines.

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