Candles, and a vow to never forget: Nepal honours the fallen as it limps back to normalcy

Curfew lifted after a Gen Z revolt overthrew Nepal's Oli govt in 36 hours, shops are reopening, people are returning to their normal lives, but not without forgetting those who are gone.

Flowers and candles for the people who died in Gen Z protests | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Kathmandu: Nepal is slowly coming back to normal, with shops and markets opening as well as tourists are back on the road.

The capital was earlier under curfew after the violent protests on 8 and 9 September that led to the resignation of prime minister K.P. Oli and the collapse of the administration. The violence has claimed 72 lives. On Friday night, the appointment of former chief justice Sushila Karki as the interim prime minister brought in a sense of order.

For now, Gen Z at large is happy given that some of their main demands have been met, the chief of them being the elevation of Karki as their candidate for interim prime minister. The new administration has six months to hold fresh elections.

“The future of this country will change. We will have better education and facilities,” Rajkumar, one of the protesters, told ThePrint.

In the aftermath, when life is slowing coming back to normal, the people of Nepal are honouring the protesters who lost their lives. On the first day when the curfew was lifted, the old and the young gathered at different points in Kathmandu to light candles, paying tribute to the deceased.

ThePrint’s Manisha Mondal brings you photos from Kathmandu:

People gather at Bijulibazar, Kathmandu to light candles for the departed | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

A white flower is kept next to the national flag of Nepal | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

People come together to light candles | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Traders, tourists and mourners light candles in solidarity of the people killed in Nepal protests, in Kathamandu’s Thamel | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

A shopkeeper opens his shop after a gap of five days following the upheaval in Kathmandu and other cities of Nepal | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

A candle is lit as tribute to the fallen protesters | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

People step out of their houses, hotels in the evening hours in Thamel, which is widely regarded as the center of Kathmandu’s nightlife | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Flower petals are arranged to depict ‘Hardik Shradhanjali’ (heartfelt tribute) in memory of the people who lost lives in the recent uprising | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Candles burn bright at a square in Thamel as a crowd mourns the loss of precious lives | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The crowd raises slogan in memory of the departed | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Cafés, clubs, bars and restaurants are now seeing visitors return in numbers | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Vehicles and commuters are now back on the roads of Kathmandu | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The main gate of Singha Durbar in Kathmandu. Housing the government secretariat, Singha Durbar was ravaged by fire during the recent protests | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Cleaning operation is underway to clear roads, streets littered with debris and damage from clashes in Kathmandu | Manisha Mondal | ThePrint