The recent violent protests in Nepal over social media bans hold a deeper message for India.
Nineteen young lives were lost and hundreds injured when police opened fire on demonstrators, almost all under the age of 28.
What began as outrage against restrictions on platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, and Snapchat soon turned into a rebellion fueled by suppressed anger over corruption, nepotism, and government indifference.
Social media, though officially banned, became the very tool of mobilization through VPNs and TikTok.
For India, this is a cautionary tale. Today, Indian youth are less vocal about farmer suicides, rural distress, or infrastructure failures, but they are hyper-sensitive about social media access.
Emotional well-being and even livelihoods now depend on these platforms. For some, it’s entertainment and escape, for others, it’s the sole source of income.
A ban, if at all planned for any reason to control the spread of unwanted news, could provoke mass unrest akin to addiction withdrawal.
The shocking rise of suicides among youngsters over something as trivial as Instagram “likes” only reflects how deeply embedded social media has become in Gen Z’s identity.
India is heavily dependent on Western-owned platforms, unlike China, which built its own ecosystem. With over 70 crore WhatsApp users, ten times more than the U.S.A, the dependency is alarming.
Nepal’s crisis demonstrates that banning social media is not merely about apps but about disrupting the lives, voices and economies of millions. India must recognize this vulnerability.
The lesson is clear, inevitable reliance on foreign platforms and the emotional entrapment of youth in the digital world could spark a similar crisis here.
Policymakers need to balance regulation, mental health awareness and digital self-reliance before India faces its own “Nepal moment", if not now in future.