BHU-educated Sushila Karki is Nepal Gen Z's choice for PM

Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki has emerged as the most likely choice to head Nepal’s interim government, after days of violent Gen-Z-led protests forced Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to resign.

Karki, 73, is the first and only woman to have served as Chief Justice of Nepal, and has now been endorsed by protest organisers as a non-partisan leader capable of steering the country through its deepening political crisis.

The youth-driven movement has demanded a corruption-free administration, dissolution of Parliament and constitutional reforms.

Kathmandu and several major cities have witnessed unprecedented unrest in the past two days after the government ordered a sweeping ban on 26 social media platforms, including Facebook, WhatsApp and X.

What began as anger against digital restrictions quickly escalated into nationwide demonstrations against graft and political elitism. At least 19 persons have been killed and hundreds injured in clashes with security forces, prompting the army to impose curfews and patrol the capital.

In this atmosphere of turmoil, protest leaders, as per local media, held a marathon virtual meeting where they unanimously backed Karki as interim Prime Minister. Widely respected for her integrity and independence, she is seen as an acceptable figure across political lines.

Born in Biratnagar in 1952, Karki studied at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in India's Varanasi and Tribhuvan University before beginning her legal career in the late 1970s. She rose through the judiciary to become Nepal’s Chief Justice in 2016, a tenure marked by an attempted impeachment that was withdrawn after public pressure.

If appointed to lead an interim government, Karki is expected to oversee a transitional process, including new elections and possible constitutional reforms, in line with the demands of the protesters. Political negotiations are still underway, even as curfews remain in place and international rights groups call for accountability over the protest deaths.