Sushila Karki Becomes Prime Minister of Nepal’s Interim Government

 

Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki has been sworn in as the Prime Minister of Nepal’s interim government. She took the oath of office on Friday. This development is expected to bring a temporary resolution to the ongoing political crisis in the country.

As interim Prime Minister, Karki will lead the government and oversee the organization of national elections within the next six months. According to Nepal-based newspaper ‘The Himalayan Times’, she will be supported by a three-member cabinet, though the names of the ministers have not yet been finalized. Until they take office, Karki herself will handle the responsibilities of all ministries. Shortly after taking the oath, she dissolved parliament.

The political crisis began after Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli resigned last Tuesday amid mass protests led by young people. To resolve the crisis, Nepal’s President Ramchandra Paudel and Army Chief Ashok Raj Sigdel held several rounds of discussions with protest leaders. Following a consensus reached in those talks, the President’s Office announced Karki’s appointment as Prime Minister. The statement noted that President Paudel, exercising his constitutional authority, appointed her in order to uphold the constitution and promote national unity.

 At 9 p.m. local time on Friday, Karki took the oath of office at the President’s residence, Shital Niwas. The ceremony was administered by President Paudel and attended by the Vice President, the Chief Justice, senior government officials, heads of security agencies, and foreign diplomats.

At 73, Sushila Karki has become the first female Prime Minister of the Himalayan nation. She was also the country’s first female Chief Justice, serving from July 2016 to June 2017. During her tenure, she gained recognition for her “zero tolerance” stance against corruption. That reputation is said to be one reason why the protesting youth proposed her name for the interim premiership.

The organization ‘Hami Nepal’, which had called for protests against Oli’s government, celebrated Karki’s swearing-in on Instagram, writing: “We did it.” They urged citizens to remain united, adding, “Honor the lives of those who sacrificed themselves for this moment.” After the oath-taking, Gen-Z protester Amrita Ban declared: “This is a moment of victory… at last the power vacuum has ended.”

Deepak Kafle, an official from the President’s Office, stated: “Sushila Karki has been appointed to lead an interim government.” This means that Nepal’s next parliamentary elections will be held in early March 2026.

At the swearing-in ceremony, Karki wore a red sari. She did not deliver a speech afterward but appeared cheerful, repeatedly greeting the guests with folded hands in traditional fashion.

According to a report by the “Hindustan Times”, Karki studied law at Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi, India, where she met Durga Prasad Subedi, whom she later married. Subedi, then a young leader of the Nepali Congress Party, was involved in a dramatic episode on June 10, 1973, when he and two others hijacked a Nepali aircraft. The hijacking was carried out to raise funds for an “armed struggle” against King Mahendra, as part of the broader fight to establish multiparty democracy in Nepal.

 Whereabouts of K. P. Sharma Oli Unknown

According to an announcement by the government of K. P. Sharma Oli, 26 social media and messaging apps were shut down across Nepal from midnight on September 4, due to failure to register on time. This move triggered widespread protests in the country on Tuesday.

Although the demonstrations began over the shutdown of social media, public discontent had many deeper causes: unemployment, corruption, the lavish lifestyles of the ruling elite’s children, and the lack of opportunities for young people in governance.

Caught between India and China, Nepal has experienced political and economic instability since the abolition of the monarchy in 2008. The country faces severe unemployment, leading millions of Nepalis to work abroad and send money home.

On Tuesday, when protesters attempted to storm the parliament building, clashes broke out with police. Security forces used tear gas, water cannons, and eventually live ammunition. The first day of clashes left 19 people dead, prompting Prime Minister Oli to resign.

However, violence continued to escalate. Reports indicate that in just a few days, Nepal witnessed its deadliest unrest since the civil war and the abolition of the monarchy in 2008, with at least 51 people killed as of yesterday.

After his resignation, Oli was moved to a secure location, but his exact whereabouts remain unknown.

Prisoners Escape

Even after the prime minister’s resignation, protesters set fire to the parliament building and torched the homes of ministers and leaders in different parts of the country. They also seized weapons from police and other security personnel. This unrest spread into prisons, leading to large-scale jailbreaks.

 Authorities confirmed that nearly 13,500 inmates escaped from various prisons in Nepal over the past few days. Some have been recaptured, but 12,533 remain at large.

According to Nepal Police spokesperson Binod Ghimire, at least 51 deaths have been confirmed. Among the dead are 21 protesters, 9 prisoners, 3 police officers, and 18 others—though he did not clarify who the “others” referred to. At least 1,300 people have been injured in the protests.

Since Wednesday, the army has taken overall responsibility for security, working alongside police to recover seized weapons. According to *The Himalayan Times*, as of yesterday, at least 268 firearms had been recovered.

In Kathmandu, the situation has begun to stabilize. Some shops have reopened, vehicles are back on the roads, and police officers are now patrolling with batons instead of rifles. However, several streets remain blocked, and army personnel continue to patrol the city, though in reduced numbers compared to earlier.