Kathmandu, Sept 8: Kathmandu Valley police faced serious security lapses during Monday’s Gen Z protest, a situation largely linked to six days of leadership vacuum at the top.
AIG Tek Bahadur Tamang retired on Bhadra 18, leaving the Valley police without a permanent head. Currently, DIG Om Rana is overseeing operations, while SSP Shekhar Khanal, Kathmandu Police Chief SSP Bishwo Adhikari, and SSP Ramesh Basnet of the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office are all from the same batch. Past incidents suggest that having officers from the same batch in key positions weakens the chain of command.
Sources indicate the absence of a permanent Valley Police Chief contributed directly to Monday’s operational failures. With no chief, coordination fell to AIG Siddhi Bikram Shah of the operations division, assisted by the Kathmandu Police Chief. AIG Shah was present for inspection in Maitighar and Baneshwar on Monday morning. While the operations division is responsible for monitoring and directing deployments, ultimate accountability rests with the Valley AIG, who has been absent for six days.
Command and control breakdowns were evident on the ground. Dispersed crowds could not be effectively managed, despite four days of Gen Z campaign activity on social media alerting authorities to planned protests. Police were unable to anticipate the protesters’ entry into the Parliament premises.
Former DIG Hemant Mall Thakuri noted that absence of leadership disrupts chain of command, causing officers to hesitate and defer responsibility. “When departmental leadership is missing, no one takes ownership. Officers fear acting until someone else arrives. And with all SSPs in the Valley from the same batch, the chain of command collapses,” Thakuri told Lokantar.
Thakuri added that security planning and deployment during Monday’s protest were flawed. “This was not a political rally. The lack of clarity on who would lead and the nature and purpose of the protest exposed serious negligence by the police. In situations where the demonstration’s form and objective are unclear, monitoring and deployment require extra caution,” he said.
The Gen Z protest exposed vulnerabilities in Kathmandu’s policing system, highlighting the risks of leadership gaps during sensitive civic events.
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