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Nepal’s Gen Z Uprising Ends Deuba’s Premiership and Party Dominance
Sher Bahadur Deuba was Nepal’s prime minister five times.
An astrologer had predicted that he would become prime minister seven times.
In 2025, young people protested after the government banned 26 social media platforms.
The protests quickly caused the government to fall.
Deuba and his wife were attacked, and their home was burned.
In 2026, Gagan Thapa became leader of Deuba’s Nepali Congress party.
The party then performed poorly in an election, while a new party won most seats.
Deuba is also involved in a money-laundering investigation, which he denies.
His supporters and opponents are now organizing competing party conventions.
Sher Bahadur Deuba has served as Nepal’s prime minister five times, despite a prediction that he would serve seven terms.
September 2025 protests followed a government ban on 26 social media platforms and brought down the government within 27 hours.
Deuba and his wife, Arzu Rana Deuba, were assaulted at their home, which protesters burned during the unrest.
Gagan Thapa replaced Deuba as Nepali Congress president in January 2026 after a special convention, a change later upheld by the Supreme Court.
The Nepali Congress suffered its worst election defeat in March 2026 and now faces rival convention plans amid a continuing money-laundering case involving Deuba and others.
- Who
- Sher Bahadur Deuba, his wife Arzu Rana Deuba, Gagan Thapa, and rival Nepali Congress factions are central to the story.
- What
- Deuba lost the Nepali Congress presidency, faced a money-laundering case, and saw his party split over competing conventions after the 2025 protests and 2026 election.
- Where
- The events took place in Nepal, including Kathmandu, Deuba’s Budhanilkantha home, and the Nepali Congress’s organizational offices and convention venues.
- When
- The major developments occurred from September 2025 through September 2026; Deuba became party president on January 16, 2026, and returned to Nepal on August 13.
- Why
- The protests began after the government banned 26 social media platforms over registration rules; later party disputes and legal proceedings followed Deuba’s political setbacks and alleged financial activity.
Thapa-led Nepali Congress
Deuba-led faction
Which convention should proceed
Thapa-led Nepali Congress
The Thapa-led leadership says its October 2–5 convention should continue and that preparations began under the applicable court ruling.
Deuba-led faction
The Deuba faction says the leadership elected at the 14th convention should organize the 15th and plans a December 7–9 convention.
Party leadership
Thapa-led Nepali Congress
Thapa’s supporters argue that the party needs new leadership after its major 2026 electoral defeat and have attracted more than 30 former Deuba-aligned leaders.
Deuba-led faction
Deuba’s supporters continue to describe him as a guardian of the party and say their membership data supports their organizational claim.
Deuba’s legal situation
Thapa-led Nepali Congress
Authorities have continued a money-laundering case, and the Special Court is considering charges involving Deuba-related financial transactions.
Deuba-led faction
Deuba denies the allegations, said the truth would emerge, and returned to Nepal; no arrest had been reported in the latest account.
Key facts
- Prime-ministerial terms
- Deuba served five terms, beginning in the 1990s and including terms in 1995, 2001, 2004, 2017, and 2021.
- Seven-term prediction
- Reports attribute the prediction to astrologers including Angiras Neupane, Ojaraj Lohani, and Suresh Chandra Rijal, though accounts differ over who first made it.
- September 2025 protests
- The government banned 26 social media platforms, and the government fell within 27 hours of the protests.
- Party leadership change
- Gagan Thapa won more than 54 percent of convention representatives’ support and became Nepali Congress president on January 16, 2026.
- 2026 election result
- The Rastriya Swatantra Party won 182 of 275 seats; the Nepali Congress won 38 and the UML won 25.
- Money-laundering case
- A Special Court charge sheet named 16 defendants, including six individuals and 10 companies; Deuba denies the allegations.
- Competing conventions
- The Thapa-led faction planned a convention for October 2–5, while the Deuba camp planned one for December 7–9.
Sources
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