Template:POTD/2023-09-20
The 1990 Nepalese revolution was a multi-party movement that brought an end to absolute monarchy and the beginning of constitutional monarchy, eliminating the panchayat system in Nepal. The revolution began in February 1990 following an alliance between two opposition groups: the Nepali Congress and the United Left Front. In the subsequent weeks, the movement became increasingly large and dangerous as thousands of students marched against riot police and hundreds were arrested and injured. The movement called for bandhs (a kind of general strike) that quickly spread across the country. In early April, 200,000 people marched to Kathmandu in protest of the monarchy. Over the course of several days, police shot and killed dozens as protesters demanded a restoration of the 1950s-era multiparty democracy system. Protesters surrounded government buildings, and King Birendra eventually removed the ban on political parties on 8 April, ending the revolution. This photograph, taken on 9 April, shows Durga Thapa, a Nepali student, leaping in the air while displaying a double victory sign amidst a large crowd in Asan, Kathmandu.Photograph credit: Min Ratna Bajracharya