Nepal’s PM Picked on a Chat App? Here’s What Discord Is and How It Works

Nepal has been seeing tremendous unrest over the last few weeks. What began as rallies against alleged govt. corruption slowly degenerated after the govt. imposed a ban on 26 apps; the citizens were outraged. This chaos in politics has ultimately brought down a govt., while on online walls a weird rumor goes, "Gen Z in Nepal is voting for a new PM on Discord."

But what is Discord and how is it being used there?

What Is Discord?

Founded in 2015 by Jason Citron and Stanislav Vishnevskiy, Discord is an instant messaging and VoIP world. Its original users were gamers who wanted to chat whilst playing games unbothered. Quickly, it turned into a mainstream mode of group communication.

Within a year, more than 25 million users were surfing on Discord around the world. Its popularity soared during the pandemic, especially among the Gen Z crowd, who eventually started to use it for things apart from just gaming, such as study groups and casual hangouts.

Why Different?

A Discord is centered around servers, unlike most traditional social media platforms such as Facebook or Instagram. Servers are community areas where members can have conversations, share files, and even go live together.

• The servers can hold 500,000 members, with 250,000 simultaneously active.
• Within each server, channels can be created for different topics — text, audio, or video.
• Users can share memes, stream games, or discuss niche interests in real time.

This structure makes Discord appealing for online movements, niche communities, and — in Nepal’s case — political discussions.

How To Use Discord

For those new to the app, here’s how to get started:

• Download Discord from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
• Sign up and create your account.
• Join or create a server based on your interests.
• Explore channels within servers to communicate via text, audio, or video.

Discord and Nepal’s Political Buzz

On the contrary, while there still remains doubt surrounding a charge of Nepalese youth using Discord for voting for a Prime Minister, it has very much become an arena for debate in political and social unrest. With bans coming into play on other heavier social platforms, Discord, with its community setup, serves as a place for young users to organize, share views, and voice opinions against decisions.

Whether or not it influences political leadership, one thing is clear: Discord has become far more than a gamer’s chat app — it’s now a powerful communication tool shaping online communities worldwide.