Maitighar Mandala, the capital’s premier protest site, transformed into a sea of defiance on Monday as landless squatters and informal settlers from across all seven provinces converged to condemn a nationwide eviction campaign led by Prime Minister Balendra Shah’s government. Organised by the National Land Rights Forum (NLRF), the protest brought together representatives from 20 districts who expressed a profound sense of betrayal, claiming the government’s current “bulldozer terror” directly contradicts pre-election promises and its own 100-point reform agenda.
The tension lies in a stark contradiction between the government’s official written policy and its actions on the ground. On March 27, the government pledged to complete a digital record of landless citizens within 60 days and resolve all landless issues within 1,000 days, including providing integrated housing. In contrast, since April 25, thousands of security personnel and bulldozers have been deployed to demolish settlements in the Kathmandu Valley, rendering an estimated 20,000 people from 3,500 families homeless. Many have been moved to temporary holding centres rather than permanent housing.
Stories emerging from the frontlines highlight a nationwide crisis of housing security. In Rautahat, Renu Tamang’s family of five faces a 21-day eviction notice for land they occupied after their original home was washed away by floods in 2003. In Chitwan, Sanjay Thapa Magar, a person with a disability who has lived in Bharatpur since 1988, expressed fear of being pushed onto the streets. Meanwhile, in Kailali, Dan Bahadur Gautam, an auto-rickshaw driver, questioned why the state is removing families who have no other assets or places to turn.
The crisis is further complicated by recent legislative shifts and court interventions. On May 3, the government issued an ordinance amending the Land Act, which effectively dissolved the Land Issue Resolution Commission and left over 1.15 million applications from landless Dalits and squatters in legal limbo. Although the Supreme Court issued an interim order on May 8 staying forced evictions without due legal process, activists reported that local administrations in districts like Banke are allegedly ignoring the order.
The National Land Rights Forum and the gathered protesters are demanding rehabilitation over simple displacement. They argue that labelling long-settled families as encroachers ignores the state’s historical failure to provide affordable housing. As the government transitions to new central and district-level committees under the amended Land Act, the protesters at Maitighar say they will remain restless until their right to live with dignity is finally secured.