Sushila is not a person who will hold on to power forever

The three main political parties of Nepal—Sher Bahadur Deuba's Nepali Congress, KP. Sharma Oli's Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) and Pushpa Kamal Dahal's Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre)—have for long worked to keep power among them. They are enemies and friends at the same time.

- BY GIRISH CHANDRA LAL

They oppose each other politically, but show support when any of them is involved in corruption or other crimes.

Historically, in the backdrop of growing dictatorship, power in Nepal came to be concentrated within a certain community, mostly Brahmins and Chhetris. And though systems of governance changed, power remained with this group. Everything from the police to the army to the judiciary is in their grip, and there came to be a name for them: Permanent Establishment Of Nepal (PEON). The same castes rule and then their next generation follows.

Because of this, the democratic system is stifled—the other communities have suffered and they have harboured anger.

And this anger erupted with the Gen Z protest. Oli, the prime minister, was trying to grab all the power, be it the executive or within his party, and in this process, he banned social media apps. The Gen Z, furious, found ways to bypass the ban (using VPNS, for instance) and took forward their protest peacefully. They did not come with weapons or with the intent of arson.

But then others, like supporters of the out-of-power monarchy and some rogue elements, saw an opportunity and infiltrated the protest. The prime minister, fearful of losing his seat, used the state machinery to shoot the protesters. The death toll now stands at 72, and around 400 have been injured.