The New Faces of Power: Who Are the Five Contenders Voted by Gen Z for Nepal’s Interim PM?

When Nepal’s streets erupted in violent Gen Z protests that left at least 72 dead, the country found itself in a political vacuum. Into that storm stepped Sushila Karki, chosen as interim prime minister on September 12 through an online poll on Discord, an instant messaging and VoIP social platform.

Karki insists she did not seek the post. “I did not wish for this job. It was after voices from the streets that I was compelled to accept,” she said, stepping into a role that demanded credibility, restraint and public trust amid the nationwide chaos.

She shifted through multiple careers, from teaching law at Mahendra Multiple Campus in Dharan early on in her career, before fully transitioning into legal practice and judicial service.

She eventually rose to become a Senior Advocate at the Nepal Bar Association by 2007.

Her judicial career picked up pace when she was appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court in 2010. Over the years, she earned a reputation for upholding judicial independence. In 2012, she was part of the bench that convicted the then Minister of Information for corruption—one of the few instances in Nepal where the politically powerful was held accountable by the courts.

She also played a key role in expanding citizenship rights for women, allowing them to pass on nationality to their children.

In 2016, Karki broke new ground as Nepal’s first woman Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Her tenure was brief but impactful, during which she delivered rulings that sought to strengthen meritocracy and reduce political interference, even at the cost of confronting powerful interests.

Just a month before her retirement in 2017, impeachment proceedings were launched against her, accusing her of overstepping her authority. The move was widely seen as retaliation for her deci­sions, including overturning a politically driven appointment for police chief. The Supreme Court eventually blocked the proceedings, which also drew criticism from the United Nations.

Following former Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli’s resignation, the political vacuum demanded someone with credibility and restraint and Karki’s name stood out among the contenders. She has been clear about the temporary nature of her role. “I will be in the post for no longer than six months,” she told the public. “I will hand over to the new government which will emerge after the elections on March 5 next year.”

In the aftermath of violent protests, her government faces immediate challenges, from widespread distrust to a paralysed administration. Karki has promised support to victims of the protests while also raising concerns over the nature of the unrest. Public sentiment in Nepal reflects both hope and scrutiny. Despite the scale of the crisis, Karki maintains that the government’s role is transitional. “My team and I are not here to taste power,” she said, calling for public cooperation as the elections approach.

Sagar Dhakal

A few weeks before Nepal’s Gen Z took to the streets, Sagar Dhakal was on Instagram, posting workout clips in his blue national cricket jersey. Stout, muscular, 24, he looked like any other young man of his generation chasing fitness goals.

“Champions aren’t built in stadiums they are forged in the grind,” he emphasises. The post is met with comments of approval. For his generation and his audience, approval comes not in words but in multiple fire emojis, and he replies in kind. Born on December 14, 2001, Sagar Dhakal is part of Nepal’s young and restless Gen Z that has risen up against the status quo of corrupt politics. He speaks their language, literally.

A multifaceted man, Dhakal is an established cricketer and an influential civic actor in Nepal. With a strong grounding in engineering and scientific research, Dhakal read for an MSc in Water Science, Policy and Management at Regent’s Park College, Oxford. He studied with the support of the Oxford-Weidenfeld & Hoffmann Trust. Before going abroad to study, he learnt on the job. He was part of the 410 MW Nalsing Gad Storage Hydropower Project, collaborating with international teams from MWH (USA) and SMEC (Australia) while representing Nepal’s Ministry of Energy.

Dhakal is also an accomplished scholar, having written Physics and Mathematics books for high school students in Nepal. He has written several books already, selling over 25,000 copies.

Dhakal is also well-known in Nepal as a proficient cricketer. He is a slow left-arm orthodox bowler for the Nepal national team. He was in the Nepal team for both One Day Internationals (ODIs) and T20 Internationals (T20Is). His ODI debut was in March 2022 against Papua New Guinea and he made his T20I debut the same year in a tournament involving Oman. In ODIs he has played eight matches and taken four wickets.

Dhakal’s dual identity as engineer and cricketer has given him a unique appeal for Nepal’s Gen Z, who see him as both one of their own and a figure to be respected and revered.

Beyond cricket and academics, Dhakal is a speaker, activist and potential electoral candidate. He is known for questioning political leaders in power about stagnant institutions. He contested the 2022 general elections from Dadeldhura as an independent candidate. Though he lost, the campaign he ran became symbolic of a growing appetite among some voters for alternatives to old, traditional political parties. Dhakal has publicly advocated for leadership under 40, saying that merit and education should be central to a career in politics. These positions have made him a voice for the younger generation which feels disenchanted by political inertia.

As his public profile has grown, Dhakal has taken on roles beyond activism. He chairs Nepal’s Securities Broker Association and in December 2024, he was elected President of the unified Stock Brokers Association of Nepal (SBAN). He is also part of the Capital Markets Forum under the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI).

Rastra Bimochan Timalsena

While his online handle is @random.nepali, Rastra Bimochan Timalsena is anything but random. A lawyer by training and a content creator by passion, he had quietly built a following online when Nepal’s recent protests unexpectedly elevated him to the national conversation, his humour and insight giving voice to a generation seeking clarity amid chaos.

Born and raised in Kathmandu, Timalsena studied law and built a career as a lawyer. Alongside his work, he began creating content on YouTube under the name @random.nepali. What started as a hobby gradually gained followers, and as of 2025, his channel has over 254,000 subscribers and more than 18 million views.

His recent upload, which takes a satirical look at a proposed social media ban, drew attention amid protests that many say contributed to the fall of former Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli’s government.

His videos are known for their relatable and often humorous take on everyday life in Nepal. He covers topics ranging from cultural quirks to issues related to law and society, blending humour with reflection in a way that has connected with a broad audience, particularly younger viewers.

In 2019, Timalsena delivered a TEDx talk titled ‘Inside the Mind of a Random YouTuber’ at TEDxMaitighar, where he discussed creativity and thinking differently. It was not political, but it highlighted his ability to explain complex ideas clearly and engagingly, helping him build a presence beyond his legal work.

When protests spread across Nepal recently, his name began appearing in discussions. Some supporters saw his clear communication and practical approach as qualities that could be useful in a leadership role. A Discord poll organised by protest participants listed him as a candidate for interim leadership, where he received 2,022 votes— around 26 per cent of the total—reflecting notable support from those involved.

When asked whether he would consider such a role, he said, “If no one is available, I am ready to lead", reported The Statesman. His straightforward reply was widely discussed, with some seeing it as an example of the kind of leadership people are looking for.

Despite the attention, Timalsena has continued focusing on his work as a lawyer and educator. He still creates content for his YouTube channel, which remains his main platform. By balancing humour and insight, he has stayed connected with his audience without appearing to shift into conventional politics.

His rise has sparked conversations about how digital platforms are enabling new voices to participate in public debate. While it remains to be seen how this will influence Nepal’s political landscape, Timalsena’s experience shows how individuals can shape discussions without aiming for power.

For now, Timalsena continues to juggle his legal career and content creation, staying connected with the audience that first made him a familiar figure in Nepal.

Mahabir Pun

Mahabir Pun was born in 1955 in Nangi, a Himalayan village in Nepal’s Myagdi district where snow often cuts off roads and towns that are scattered across the rugged hills. The isolation of his birthplace, with its rough terrain and absence of modern infrastructure, would go on to shape a spirit of resilience and tenacity that defined his life’s work.

Pun has said in interviews that his father, Krishna Pun, was a Gurkha who placed great importance on education despite the family’s limited finances. He has described his childhood as one of service, waking up at the crack of dawn to help his father with chores, including caring for livestock. He says he used to walk miles just to attend school.

A high school graduate, Pun has worked as a teacher in village schools while juggling other responsibilities. He received a scholarship to the University of Nebraska in the United States, which he says broadened his horizons and strengthened his conviction that education and information are essential to transform Nepali lives.

In the early 2000s, Pun conceptualised and launched his signature project—the Nepal Wireless Networking Project. The idea was to bring the internet to far-flung Himalayan villages and to mobilise wireless technologies and localised solutions for challenging terrain.

By 2006, the project had connected 175 mountain villages, allowing villagers who had previously been cut off to access e-learning, train teachers, introduce tele-doctors and encourage local e-commerce.

In 2012, Pun founded the National Innovation Centre, also known as the Rashtriya Abiskar Kendra, with the goal of increasing research and development-related investment in Nepal so the country could move towards self-sufficiency. He even donated his personal land for the project. Among the Kendra’s early plans was a ten-megawatt hydropower project aimed at providing reliable funding for its operations, a plan blending infrastructure, self-reliance and long-term vision.

Pun’s work has been widely recognised in Asia as well as globally, earning him the Ramon Magsaysay Award, often called ‘Asia’s Nobel Prize’. He was awarded the prize in recognition of his pioneering work in the wireless networking sphere. In 2014, he was inducted into the Internet Hall of Fame for his work in bringing connectivity to the digitally underserved.

He has also received many national awards and honours within Nepal, including the Ratna-Shrestha National Award for his book Mahabir Pun: Samjhana, Sapana Ra Aviral Yatra.

This autobiography, also known as Mahabir Pun: Remembrance, Dreams, and an Unceasing Journey, sold over 218,000 copies, raising about Rs 120 million, which Pun invested in the National Innovation Centre.

Pun is now focused on scaling up innovation, ensuring that youth in rural Nepal have access to not just the tools but also the support to turn ideas into action. The National Innovation Centre is considered by many as the key to Nepal’s future.

Harka Sampang

A few weeks after Nepal’s streets filled with young protesters, the name Harka Sampang has travelled far beyond Dharan, an eastern town in the Himalayan nation, that he runs as mayor. To many in Gen Z, he is the outsider who speaks their anger against corruption.

A prime minister should be a true leader, says Sampang, a migrant who returned to Nepal in 2015 and is now the founder of an organisation that fights corruption and illegal resource extraction, the National Unity Network. His pitch appears to have clicked with Nepal’s rampaging Gen Z protesters, who recently overthrew the government amid overwhelming accusations of corruption.

Though Sampang made a bid for mayor in 2019, his campaign collapsed before he could be registered as a candidate. He shocked Nepal’s political class when he won three years later. In 2022, the 42-year-old rode a wave of anti-establishment anger and won Dharan’s mayoral race as an independent with 39.8 per cent of the vote. In doing so, the former lawyer defeated candidates from Nepal’s leading parties. With young people taking to the streets to express their disgust at elite ‘nepo kids’ flaunting their wealth while unemployment was at an all-time high, Sampang’s win felt like a pivotal moment in the fight against corruption.

Sampang’s draw for Gen Z lies largely in his lived philosophy of shramdan (voluntary contribution of labour). During his 98-day campaign, he piped water 42 kilometres from a stream near Dharan. He was joined by over 5,000 citizens, each carrying spades and working to achieve what the bureaucracy had said was impossible. Sampang was in the trenches labouring shoulder-to-shoulder with volunteers, planting trees, eating the same food and sleeping on the same ground. He displayed participatory leadership, something younger Nepalese citizens hold in high regard.

Sampang’s actions so far, which involved labouring with citizens, digging trenches and delivering results where politicians failed, are seen as Nepal’s blueprint for a new nation free of corruption.

His rise as a Rai leader from eastern Nepal also marks a break from the traditional Bahun-Chhetri-Newar-Thakuri dominance that has long shaped Nepal’s politics. A populist outsider, an ethnic minority and a hands-on mobiliser, he appears to meet every criterion for a country ravaged by rampant corruption and hungry for a fresh start.

Critics, however, say Sampang has a darker side: encouraging confrontation. He has threatened to file defamation cases against journalists and sidelined his own deputy mayor. These incidents have led seasoned political commentators to question whether he is a nationalist sensation or a true institution-builder.

Gen Z, meanwhile, has shown the same contrarian streak, turning to former Chief Justice Sushila Karki for leadership, instead of Sampang. Karki currently serves as the interim prime minister of Nepal.

The tragedy of Sampang appears to be that he offers Nepal a glimpse of the ‘new country’ the new generation longs for, yet the very reasons for his popularity—ranging from disdain for red tape and bureaucracy to defiance of traditional politics—are the very factors that his critics claim make him a maverick risk at the national level. And with 16 governments in as many years, Nepal cannot afford that risk.

(Compiled by Saher Hiba Khan & Avantika Mehta)

The article appeared in the Outlook Magazine's October 1, 2025, issue Nepal GenZ Sets Boundaries as 'The Revolution Is Giving'