The State, Justice, and Double Standards in Nepal: An Urgent Call for Accountability

# Sanket Kiranti

Renowned commentator and writer Prem Sagar Poudel has raised a series of compelling and critical questions for the current government of Nepal particularly the Ministry of Home Affairs regarding their selective investigation and silence on major incidents of violence and lawlessness.

Why is the government investigating only the events of September 8 (Bhadra 23) but not those of September 9 (Bhadra 24), when state institutions were attacked and dozens were killed? If the state turns a blind eye to crimes of such magnitude, both history and the people will remember it not as a government of justice but of complicity. Accountability cannot be partial.

On September 8, 21 citizens lost their lives during the peaceful ZEN-Z movement. However, after the Oli administration fell the following morning, 61 more people were reportedly killed across the country. Were those lives less valuable? Justice cannot differentiate between citizens based on political timing or affiliations. Every life matters. There are no “super citizens” and “sub-citizens.”

Multiple video footages and eyewitness accounts point to targeted arson, looting, and destruction within critical state institutions such as the Parliament building, Singha Durbar, the Office of the President, Supreme Court, and various detention centers. These are not random acts. They appear to be orchestrated by specific political groups or individuals. To exonerate them without proper investigation is not just negligence it is institutional betrayal. Delaying investigations until the evidence disappears and public pressure wanes is a tactic that must be rejected outright.

In one shocking revelation, it took three days to extinguish fires in Kathmandu’s core government buildings due to a lack of fire engines in the capital, requiring help from Lalitpur. This demands not just an internal review, but public accountability. If the allegations are false, the government has the opportunity to clarify with transparency. If true, it is a systemic failure.

Private businesses from the Bhatbhateni supermarket chain to several other prominent enterprises were reportedly looted and set ablaze. Who was behind these attacks? What preventive measures were in place, if any? What steps are being taken to ensure such incidents do not go unpunished? The perpetrators of these acts must not only be brought under legal scrutiny but also face asset freezes to ensure reparations. This is how a government proves it is on the side of its people, not above them.

At the heart of this crisis is not just law and order it is about who has the right to rule. Some now argue that those behind this wave of destruction should be handed the reins of government, allowed to shape policies and rewrite the constitution. But can violence be rewarded with political power? When those in power regardless of age are chosen for their destructive capability rather than democratic legitimacy, the entire system is undermined. It’s time we recognize that youth, such as 28- or 29-year-olds in this century, are not naive they are global citizens, versed in AI, science, business, and civil advocacy. Age is no excuse for exclusion, but neither is chaos a credential for leadership.

The government’s decision to investigate only September 8, while ignoring September 9, appears politically motivated. If this is indeed the intent of the Home Ministry, it represents a gross misreading of the national sentiment. Selective justice is not justice at all it is a path toward permanent instability.

Impunity cannot be justified under any pretext. Today, one group burns the system; tomorrow, another will turn it to ashes. Is this the trajectory we want for Nepal? Do we want a cycle of destruction as our national narrative?

Who orchestrated this? If we delay finding the answers, it may be too late. That is why there must be urgent national-level engagement. Independent investigations are not just desirable they are essential. At least 10–12 independent civil society-led research commissions should be formed, with the government acting only as a facilitator. The truth must come from the people, not be manufactured by power.

What Nepal needs now is not more disorder, but a renewed commitment to justice. We do not seek the protection of criminals or the glorification of violence. We seek a society where justice applies to all regardless of class, caste, or political connection.

Worryingly, some of the most vocal defenders of justice in the past are now serving in positions within the investigation commission itself raising serious questions about neutrality. Where are the independent minds? If the very people under suspicion sit in judgment, how can justice be expected?

The events of September 8 and 9 reflect two drastically different realities: one of peaceful civic protest, and another of orchestrated violence and institutional breakdown. Yet the government’s response has been asymmetrical, reinforcing perceptions of bias and selective governance.

Over 1,200 firearms were looted. Over 50 police officers and security personnel were killed. Historic government buildings were torched. And yet, the masterminds of these crimes walk freely some holding public office, others using their influence to evade accountability.

Meanwhile, students and peaceful demonstrators are being vilified, beaten, and criminalized for simply raising questions. A democratic state cannot operate on such double standards. The very foundation of democracy is equality before the law and the right to dissent. Suppressing one voice while sheltering another exposes the state’s moral collapse.

Today, the people are asking: why does the state protect some murderers and punish others? Why does political alignment dictate justice? Why is it that the most violent actors are rehabilitated while the most vocal critics are persecuted?

Justice is not a tool of the majority. It is the shield of the minority. It is not meant to protect the powerful it is meant to protect the vulnerable.

If the government continues to ignore these core principles, then the trust deficit between the people and the state will only widen. And once trust is gone, governance becomes rule by fear not by consent.

The ZEN-Z movement has revealed one thing clearly: the people of Nepal are not asleep. They still believe in justice. They are still willing to raise their voices. They are frustrated but not defeated. They are angry but not anarchists.

Their voice must be heard not dismissed as “agitators,” “foreign-influenced,” or “naive.” These are citizens. This is their country too. They want peace, dignity, and justice not violence, not chaos.

The state must remember it does not belong to a party, a minister, or a government. It belongs to the people. And that includes those who marched on September 8, those who were killed on September 9, and those who have been silenced for decades.

What Nepal needs now is not vengeance, but clarity. Not fear, but courage. Not blame, but responsibility. Justice must be impartial, and investigations must be transparent. Only then can the state earn back the trust it has lost.

Because the state is not just for the ZEN-Z protesters. It is for all of us. And if it fails one of us it fails all of us.