Over the past three decades, Nepal has experienced severe political instability, transitioning through multiple systems of governance owing to short-lived governments, rampant corruption, and public disappointment. Since 1990, the country has seen 32 different governments, and not a single prime minister was able to complete a full five-year term.
The following three distinct happenings of unrest were seen and experienced over the last 30 years due to unhealthy and unethical politics:
1. The Decade of Civil War & Royal Crisis (1996–2006)
- · The Maoist Insurgency: Launched in 1996, a decade-long so-called armed civil war between the Maoist rebels and the state resulted in more than 17,000 deaths and severely disrupted the country’s developments and economy.
- · The Palace Massacre: In 2001, King Birendra and eight other royal family members were mercilessly assassinated in a palace shooting, plunging the nation and monarchy into deep instability.
- · Royal takeover: To stabilize the nation from the chaos and political infighting among democratic parties, King Gyanendra took over the state power in 2005 which prompted massive street protests.
2. The Transition to a New Constitution and the Republic (2006–2015)
- · Abolition of the Monarchy: A peace deal was signed between the major political parties and the Maoists to bring them into mainstream politics. The 240-year-old monarchy was unconstitutionally abolished, turning Nepal into a federal democratic republic.
- · Constitutional Deadlock: Political and ethnic factions locked in political and non-political issues spent nearly eight years over drafting of a new constitution.
- · Hasty Implementation: It took the devastation of the 2015 earthquake—which killed nearly 9,000 people—to finally push lawmakers to fast-track and adopt the new constitution later that year.
3. Prolonged Instability & Gen Z Backlash (2015–Present)
- · The Coalition "Musical Chairs": The actual implementation of the constitution failed to bring stability owing to frequent power alternation through fragile coalitions involving K P Sharma Oli (CPN-UML), Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" (CPN-Maoist Centre), and Sher Bahadur Deuba (Nepali Congress). Parliaments were untimely dissolved due to opportunistic alliance-switching among them.
- · Economic Stagnation & Brain Drain: Decades of mismanagement and rampant corruptions led to high inflation, cooperative scams, rising foreign debt and rapidly diminishing local job opportunities forcing millions of youth to migrate abroad.
- · The 2025 Violent Protests: In September 2025, youth-led "Gen Z" protests and decades of accumulated public anger hit the streets nationwide. Triggered initially by a government social media ban, the movement quickly turned into an anti-corruption revolt. Mass curfews were defied, and violent clashes took place between the protestors and the security forces resulting in the unfortunate death of 76 people which ultimately forced the collapse of the government and the resignation of PM Oli.
The political instability due to unhealthy and immoral politics in the nation continued to hinder long-term economic planning and ultimately its growth leaving the country exceptionally vulnerable.
It remains to be seen whether the Balen led almost two thirds majority government will move the nation towards ever lasting peace and prosperity with its zero tolerance on corruption and good governance strategy.
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