KATHMANDU, Sept 23: The outgoing Minister of Education, Science, and Technology and CPN-UML leader Raghuji Pant has revealed what unfolded in KP Sharma Oli’s final cabinet meeting. Speaking on Nagarik Frontline, he gave a detailed account of the day’s events.
According to Minister Pant, following the September 8 demonstration and the resulting human casualties, an emergency cabinet meeting was convened, during which former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak announced his resignation, taking responsibility for the incident. Immediately afterwards, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli read a letter sent by Elon Musk’s company X to the government.
“If we look at it as a letter from a company to a sovereign nation, it was extremely insulting to Nepal,” Pant said. According to him, the letter included phrases such as “your corrupt country, here and there.” Pant added that everyone in the cabinet was stunned after the Prime Minister read it. “We were completely taken aback after hearing that letter,” he said.
Cabinets of Province 2 and 3 expanded
Following the letter, Pant proposed temporarily reopening Facebook while maintaining the ban on X. “I suggested—let’s keep X banned but open Facebook, because perhaps by communicating with Facebook, some solution could emerge,” he said. However, the Prime Minister took a firm stance, insisting that no compromise could be made on national sovereignty. “How can we tolerate a country being humiliated like this, a nation, a sovereign state being insulted?” Pant quoted the Prime Minister as saying, adding that he fully supported this position.
Pant recalled that on the day of the Gen-Z movement, he was gathered for a cabinet meeting. “We somehow managed to assemble at Baluwatar for the meeting. In that session, the Home Minister announced his resignation, citing that he could not continue in his role.”
At the time, concerns were raised that leaving a key ministry vacant under such circumstances could create problems, he recounted. “Alongside his resignation, the decision regarding Facebook was brought up for reconsideration. The Prime Minister also addressed the letter sent by Elon Musk’s company X.”
Pant added that on September 8, he was attending an International Literacy Day program in Sanothimi when he learned the protests were intensifying. Citing security concerns, he was instructed not to leave, so he remained there all day.
In the evening, after learning about the emergency cabinet meeting, he drove to Baluwatar in his private car. He expressed deep sorrow over the human casualties in the protests and said they hoped such incidents would never occur again.
Gen-Z should enter politics
Pant suggested that the Gen-Z generation should enter politics to help eliminate the distortions in the political system. “Gen-Z are our brothers and sisters, our sons and daughters with pure hearts. Their demands are valid, and now they must work on political reforms. They have two options: either join a party they like and work to reform it while contributing to the overall system, or start their own party. They must act within these two paths,” he said.
“Right now, chaos has erupted like a storm, causing significant damage. This alone will not provide any solution,” Pant added, emphasizing the urgent need for meaningful political engagement from the younger generation.
