Former Prime Minister of Nepal, KP Sharma Oli, has been arrested by the country’s police just a day after the new government was sworn in. Oli, who was ousted from power during the Gen-Z movement, was detained on Saturday (28 March), following the swearing-in ceremony held on Friday (27 March).

In September last year, at least 77 people were killed during protests led by Nepal’s Gen-Z movement. Oli has been arrested as part of an investigation into whether he bears responsibility for those deaths.

Although the movement initially began in protest against a temporary ban on social media, it was largely driven by long-standing economic dissatisfaction. On the very first day of the protests, at least 19 young people were killed during a crackdown.

Senior leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (UML), Min Bahadur Shahi, stated, “He was taken from his residence this morning.” Police spokesperson Om Adhikari confirmed that Oli and his Home Minister, Ramesh Lekhak, had been detained.

Meanwhile, Balen Shah, a rapper-turned-politician, won the parliamentary election held on 5 March this year and was sworn in as Prime Minister last Friday. This election was the first since the fall of Oli’s government.

A government-backed investigation report stated that there was no proven allegation of a direct order to open fire. However, no efforts were made to stop or control the shooting, and this negligence led to the deaths of minors as well.