India, Sept. 11 -- Former Nepalese prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli now finds himself in a position once occupied by Bangladesh's Sheikh Hasina - a leader who underestimated the fury of a connected generation. Both believed that choking social media could muzzle dissent. Both assumed that cutting digital lifelines would contain anger. Instead, both triggered leaderless uprisings that rattled the foundations of their rule.
What began as simmering frustration over corruption, inflation, and an unfulfilled post-pandemic recovery erupted after Oli's administration banned 26 major digital platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube, and X. For millions of Nepalis, this blackout struck at the heart of daily life. The reaction was i...