Former chief justice of Nepal Sushila Karki seems to be emerging as the frontrunner to head the Himalayan nation’s caretaker government and her appointment could be announced as early as Friday afternoon, two news agencies have reported.
The development comes after days of violent youth-led anti-government protests, triggered by a controversial social media ban, that forced Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to resign on Tuesday.
The unrest has left at least 51 people dead and more than 1,300 injured.
“Sushila Karki will be appointed interim prime minister. They (Gen Z) want her. This will happen today,” a constitutional expert consulted by President Ramchandra Paudel and Nepali Army chief Ashok Raj Sigdel told Reuters on condition of anonymity:
Karki, 73, is Nepal’s first and only female chief justice and is widely respected for her integrity and anti-corruption stance. If appointed, she would become the first woman to serve as the country’s prime minister.
According to PTI, a crucial meeting of key stakeholders – including representatives of the Gen Z group that spearheaded the protests – is scheduled at 2 pm at the President’s Office, Sheetal Niwas.
The meeting, postponed from an earlier 9 am slot, is expected to finalise Karki’s name and decide on broader constitutional issues, including whether to dissolve Parliament.
“However, Karki's name for the post of the caretaker prime minister was tentatively agreed by all sides,” PTI quoted sources as saying.
Other names previously floated included Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, former Nepal Electricity Authority chief Kulman Ghising, and Dharan mayor Harka Sampang.
Differences remain over the status of Nepal’s parliament. Sources told PTI that President Paudel opposes dissolving the legislature, warning it could trigger a constitutional crisis. A section of the Gen Z protesters had even demanded Paudel’s resignation, though others cautioned that such a move would create a dangerous vacuum.
Despite uncertainty at the top, signs of normalcy returned to Kathmandu on Friday. Shops reopened, cars returned to the streets, and police switched from carrying rifles to batons. Curfew restrictions were partially lifted in some areas to ease daily life.
Still, grief lingers. Families began receiving bodies of those killed in the protests.
“While his friends backed off (from the protests), he decided to go ahead,” said Karuna Budhathoki, waiting to collect her 23-year-old nephew’s body at Kathmandu’s Teaching Hospital.
Zulfikar Alam, whose nephew Ashab Alam Thakurai died just a month after his wedding, told Reuters: “The last we spoke to him ... he said he was stuck with the protest. After that we could not contact him ... eventually we found him in the morgue.”
Police spokesperson Binod Ghimire confirmed to Reuters that the death toll included 21 protesters, nine prisoners, three police officers, and 18 others.
Meanwhile, amid speculation that the army could take over and even reinstate the monarchy, the Nepal Army issued a clarification. “Don’t believe in false comments, opinions and analysis linking Nepal Army, being spread in the current situation,” the army said in a statement carried by PTI.
President Paudel has accepted Oli’s resignation but said his cabinet will continue in a caretaker capacity until a new council of ministers is formed.
Karki’s expected elevation could mark a turning point in Nepal’s effort to stabilise its fragile democracy.
