Overview
- Supporters gathered peacefully around the statue of Prithvi Narayan Shah, chanting for restoration as riot police maintained a heavy presence.
- This was the first major pro-royalist mobilization since September’s youth-led protests forced an interim administration and set parliamentary elections for March.
- In a 12-minute message on Jan. 10, Gyanendra Shah warned that Nepal “might not survive any more,” a rare intervention that amplified royalist sentiment.
- Public frustration over corruption, unemployment and unstable governance has buoyed support for the monarchy’s return despite its abolition in 2008.
- Past events turned deadly, with two killed at a pro-monarchy rally last March, and at least 76 people reported dead during the September 2025 unrest that ousted K. P. Sharma Oli and installed Sushila Karki as interim prime minister.