Nepal Seeks New PM Amid Political Vacuum, Army-Led Talks

After a week of internal political turmoil, Nepal is in a state of political uncertainty. Negotiations on the formation of a transitional government are ongoing. The country currently has no prime minister: on September 9, under pressure from a mass movement, Prime Minister Sharma Oli resigned.

Currently, the security situation in the capital, Kathmandu, and other regions is controlled by the Nepalese army, which has been involved in restoring order. Curfews and restrictions have been in place, although they were later partially eased. The death toll from clashes between protesters and security forces has reached at least 34, and more than 1,300 people have been injured. The unrest has also led to mass prison breaks, with thousands of inmates escaping from various prisons across the country.

In the political vacuum created by the collapse of the government, negotiations are underway between President Ram Chandra Paudel, the army chief, and representatives of the protest movement to appoint a head of a transitional government. The leading candidate put forward by the "Gen Z" protesters is Sushila Karki, the country's former female chief justice, who is respected for her anti-corruption stance.

It is reported that Karki has accepted the offer to lead the interim administration, the main goal of which will be to hold new elections. She has even announced that she will organize the elections within a year. However, the consensus around Karki is not absolute; various groups of protesters are proposing their own candidates. Among the alternative candidates is Kulman Ghising, the former head of the national electricity grid, who is credited with ending power outages.

According to the latest information, the second round of negotiations between the leaders of the protests and the army was underway to finalize the leadership and structure of the interim government. The main demands of the protesters include not only a change in leadership, but also systemic reforms aimed at combating corruption and ensuring accountability. As of September 11, there are no major protests in Nepal. However, the situation remains unstable.