Nepal’s highest court has ordered the release of former Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and his then-Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak, ending a two-week detention on charges of criminal negligence linked to a police crackdown on youth protests last year.
The court’s decision on Thursday reversed the government’s arrest warrants, which were issued just hours after the swearing-in of the new prime minister, Balendra Shah, a 35-year-old former rapper and Kathmandu mayor. The detention was directly tied to the violent suppression of massive “Gen Z” protests in 2025, which resulted in 76 deaths.
A high-level commission concluded that the fatalities were due to extreme negligence and a failure of command responsibility, recommending prosecution of Oli, Lekhak, and former police chief Chandra Kuber Khapung. However, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday that authorities must either formally conclude their investigation or release the suspects.
Both former officials were released on the condition that they remain available for further questioning, according to police spokesman Pravin Dhital. Oli, 74, who resigned in September 2025 amid the escalating protests, is currently hospitalized for heart complications and remains under medical supervision.
In a social media statement after his release, Oli dismissed the investigation as politically motivated, calling it a “witch hunt” and accusing the new government of acting with prejudice. Despite the collapse of his government, Oli remains a powerful figure, having been re-elected as chairman of his party in December.
In a separate accountability move, Nepal’s anti-corruption agency has filed criminal charges against former parliamentary speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara and his son in connection with an international gold smuggling ring. The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority alleges the duo smuggled 8.4 kilograms of gold into the country in 2022 by concealing it in electronic cigarettes at Tribhuvan International Airport. The scheme is said to have generated illicit proceeds of 77 million rupees (about $527,000), which were laundered through land purchases and bank accounts. Mahara was initially arrested in October 2025 amid the mass protests but was later released on bail.