Overview
- Police detained former prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli and a former interior minister over last September’s protest crackdown, according to local media reports.
- The reported arrests came after Balendra Shah took office as prime minister following his Rastriya Swatantra Party’s landslide win.
- Shah is 35 and rose as a rapper-turned-Kathmandu mayor who drew strong youth backing with blunt anti-corruption messages.
- He defeated Oli in a constituency race in the March 5 parliamentary election, signaling a break from Nepal’s long-dominant parties.
- Large youth protests last September forced Oli to resign, paving the way for the outsider surge that reshaped the vote and now faces an early test on accountability.