Nepal, Sept. 14 -- This past week, Kathmandu's streets echoed with chants not heard in decades. Teenagers wielding smartphones demanded an end to corruption, repression and hopelessness. The resignation of Nepal's prime minister, which resulted from a wave of "Gen Z" protests, left the country in what some call a condition of statelessness. The state's moral legitimacy-its capacity to claim the loyalty of its citizens-collapsed.

This is not the first time Nepal has faced such a reckoning. The country has seen revolutions in 1951, 1990 and 2006. Each was meant to inaugurate a new era of justice and opportunity. Each time, elites reshaped institutions to serve themselves, leaving citizens disillusioned. What makes the current moment differ...