Career
The movement put an end to absolute monarchy and the repressive Panchayat system, and reinstated multiparty democracy in the country. College freshman Sthapit was shot by security forces during a street demonstration at Bhotahiti, a market street in central Kathmandu. He was rushed to nearby Bir Hospital which was crowded with wounded demonstrators, and died shortly after.
He was a student of Intermediate in Commerce at Public Youth Campus, Kathmandu.
The Panchayat system was established by King Mahendra in 1960 after ousting Nepal"s first democratically elected government and dissolving Parliament. A new constitution was promulgated in 1962 that gave the king supreme powers.
The Panchayat system pursued a policy promoting one religion, language and values that aroused resentment in Nepal"s multicultural society. Sthapit"s statues have been installed at a crossroads at Yatkha and at Public Youth Campus, the college where he studied, to commemorate his memory.
A street in Yatkha near Kathmandu Durbar Square has been named Sahid Nirgun Marg in his honor.