Ultimatum

 

Ultimatum

-BottleButea

Sep 11, 2025 

“Sunyau timle?” (“Did you hear?”) my sister said excitedly as she entered my room. I was giving the finishing touches to the journal I had written yesterday. I write whatever happens on the day it occurs in a diary, and since it’s never fluent, I start typing it properly the next day. I was using GPT to help correct the grammar and had finally reached the last paragraph when I heard her. Our parents were asleep, so in a lighter voice, the second time she asked, “Sunyau timle?” The Gen-Z group had given an ultimatum to make Sushila Karki the interim PM; if not, they warned, a protest would start again.

I recounted the events that had happened today and thought perhaps this was the only way to ensure that the protest would be successful. This morning I felt a bit sluggish, perhaps because I woke up later than I usually do (I usually wake up at 6-7 a.m., but today I woke up at 8). My father didn’t miss the chance and joked that I had woken up too early. I grinned and went to drink warm water. 

As per my usual routine, I drank the water as I looked outside the window. The smoke was still visible, but there was a considerable decrease compared to yesterday. I usually prefer not to use my phone for about an hour after waking up, however with the turmoil going on I doubt there was anyone not glued to their screen to know what would happen next.

There were no major headlines. 

The army’s control had now created civic peace and although there was confusion in the air, nothing major had taken place. Some good news did pop up, like escapees being caught and stolen arms being retrieved. People also started to look through the videos that had been shared and started to expose those that had looted, vandalized, and damaged properties yesterday. One of the posts I saw contained the phrase “ Share & Expose”, way better than the slogan I had made, I chuckled to myself.

Our vicinity seemed pretty peaceful, so we decided it was safe to go out for a while. My mother said she had to go to the tarkari bazaar, and my sister and I were really curious about what damages our area had faced. So we went out. The market had few people but it was more than I had expected, considering there was a curfew. My father and I wanted to go reach Buddha, however the army promptly stopped us so we decided it was wiser not to go.

 

There was also news of the past parties beginning to be active again. They put forward two demands as their sister organizations (student unions, trade unions) came out to protest:

1. The parliament should not be dissolved

2. A solution should be found from within the present constitution. 

They warned of grave consequences for the nation if unconstitutional steps were taken. News reports said that the major parties (NC, UML, CPN UML, and RSP) were holding conferences with each other. I was surprised that even RSP, which was trying to establish itself as an alternative, was in the conference. I thought this could do great harm to them in the future, especially considering that its leader Rabi lamichane (reporter turned politician) who had been jailed for a corporate fraud case, had gotten out of confinement during the recent protest and was receiving huge backlash.  However, the public was not listening to the woes of the old parties, signaling they had had enough. Their frustration was shown when the party-affiliated people were chased out of the RNAC area as they protested today. People slammed them with the title “ Jholey” as they chased them out. 

I wonder if, in the future, it will be shunned upon as the word “Nazi” is in Germany.

Similarly, it was surprising that even by evening it was still not clear who would lead the interim government. Yesterday, after the popular mayor Balendra Shah’s approval, I was certain that Sushila Karki would be the interim Prime minister, but there was still division.

 

It is not clear whether they were actually “youths” or from the gen-z protest or not, but people were protesting in front of the army headquarters demanding Balen or Harka Sampang(popular mayor of Dharan) to lead the interim government. Balen had already stated that he would not be the interim PM, so I thought there could be an ulterior motive behind asking him, or perhaps they were simply unaware of what an interim PM is. Harka Sampang, on the other hand, became an unpopular choice as he desperately wanted the post. Although he had fair share of popularity, he constantly posted in social media calling himself the best choice for PM, even going as far as to label Karki as a foreign agent and Balen as a coward. People were now turning away from him.

At the same time, Sagar Dhakal who had previously contested in elections but lost was a popular youth candidate. He had probably reached Kathmandu by flight and was discussing with other youth representatives. Who he supported could also sway public opinion.

In the evening my mother turned on the TV, exclaiming that a press conference had been announced by Gen-z representatives. There was a live telecast on News 24, but when the representatives started talking, I did not recognize any of them. To my surprise, even Sudan Gurung, the leader of Hami Nepal, was there. 

I could barely make out what was being said since the telecast kept lagging.

During the broadcast, he cried, showing blood in the vest he was wearing. He shouted that this was not a joke and he would not forget the sacrifices of his brother and sisters. He also explained how hurt he felt when he was accused of being a foreign agent or collaborator with the same old parties. He said that he wanted the interim government to be formed and parliament dissolved, but he wouldn’t let the constitution itself be scrapped because of the security risk that it posed. A statement I particularly liked was when he claimed he was not vying for any spot in the new government and would act only as a watchdog. Although the presentation did not look formal, and he himself did not talk that professionally (especially considering the historic times and significance the press conference could possibly have) he seemed to be frankly putting out his opinions and looked passionate, a feeling which I believe other Nepalis watching the live broadcast shared.

Around 5 p.m., my father and I decided to go out again because we were bored at home. When we reached Chabel Chowk, the army was significantly less strict, and the flow of people had started to increase. Although we would not have been stopped if we wanted to go till Bouddha, we decided it was better not to, since the streets were still not completely safe and it was getting dark soon. My father also told me that if the Gen-Z infighting continued, the movement would stall and the parties would once again get their hands back on the government. He also predicted that, judging by the way the army had become more lenient, the situation would return to normal by tomorrow. I agreed. However, now it seems that it will instead get stricter tomorrow.

Perhaps because the representatives also feared irrelevancy of the protest and were afraid of the sacrifices being in vain, they announced the ultimatum. Hami Nepal also accused the President of trying to delay matters further so that the old parties could form their own government. 

At the time of this writing the reply has not yet come, but I appreciate the bold move from Hami Nepali. Learning from the events of Sri Lanka, where the same parliament was allowed to function after the protest, it seemed the old parliament would not be very effective. Such a clear move was needed to keep the demands straight and prevent stalling. Additionally, more time would possibly allow for foreign interference, and some news reporting (although it is uncertain if this is true or not) the army's conference with the king is also alarming. Although quick and bold statements might lead some commentators to call the decision rash, I feel it is absolutely necessary for now.

I wonder if the Sri Lankan protest had not taken place, would the decision have been announced with similar urgency?

What decision the army and the President take will be historic and will decide whether the protest is successful or not. It seems many of us will not be able to sleep, waiting for the reply from the President.