Did Gen Z Protestors Attack the Pashupatinath Temple in Nepal? No, Video Is Old!

This video is from July and predates the current protests in Nepal which started in September.

A clip showing some men holding the gates of a temple has gone viral on social media platforms.

• Those sharing the clip noted that it showed protestors in Nepal breaking the temple of Lord Pashupati (another name for Lord Shiva), as a part of the protests in the country.

Who shared it? NDTV India reported on this video, stating that the Pashupatinath temple was vandalised amid protests.

(Archives of similar claims can be found here and here.)

Is the claim true?: No, the claim is false.

• This is an old video from July 2025 showing a festival and is unrelated to the recent protests.

What we found: At first, we divided the viral video into multiple screenshots and ran a Google reverse image search on some of them.

• This led us to a post on Facebook which featured the same video. It was uploaded on 14 July.

• It read, "Who knows about this festival at the Pashupatinath Temple? Which festival is it and when is it held? Why have people climbed the gate? #pashupatinath"

• We checked the Facebook profile and found another post which clarified that the video was recent or related to the ongoing protests in Nepal.

• The caption further stated that the video showed 'Paha Chahre Jatra', which was an important festival of the Newar community in Nepal.

• They mentioned that there had been no attacks or unpleasant incidents in the area and assured safety.

• The post requested others to not to be confused or spread confusion.

• Team WebQoof ran a relevant keyword search to check if there had been attacks on temples in Nepal amid protests.

• We found a report by Patrika News which stated that the Pashupatinath temple had been closed for devotees and saw army deployment amid the Gen Z protests.

• We also found a post from 9 September on X by a user, Dr KN Swami who uploaded a video showing 'current situation' at Pashupatinath temple.

• The post mentioned that it was peaceful and the army was present in the vicinity.

अहिले रातीको पशुपतिनाथको अवस्था । पशुपति शान्त छ । सेनाले सुरक्षा दिइरहेको छ । हामीहरू निरन्तर हेरिरहेका छौँ । चिन्ता नगर्नुहोस् । पशुपतिलाई कसैले छुन सक्दैन । pic.twitter.com/6SGVzvq38m

— डा. स्वामी केशवानन्द ( Dr. KN Swami ) (@swami_kn) September 9, 2025

Conclusion: An old video from July has gone viral stating that the protestors in Nepal vandalised the Pashupatinath temple, amid recent protests.

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