Journalists in Nepal face attacks, arrests, judicial harassment, and hostility from both officials and the public. IPI documented at least 31 press freedom violations in the six-month period between October 2022 and March 2023, nearly two-thirds of which were cases of physical attacks or verbal and online threats.

There were at least 15 cases of physical attacks against journalists during this monitoring period, as well as at least eight documented cases of verbal and online threats, including at least three death threats.

IPI also documented an increase in government censorship leading into the general elections in December 2022.  The Press Council Nepal issued a notice to Nagarik Daily about the publication of a satirical cartoon of Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli, the former Prime Minister and President of the Communist Party of Nepal. The Council claimed the cartoon violated journalism and electoral codes of conduct. The Election Commission of Nepal also ordered online news outlet Setopati to delete an article about the son of the former attorney general and election candidate Agni Kharel on grounds that the story was defamatory and a violation of the electoral code of conduct.

In January 2023, a government committee issued a decision to classify information related to more than 80 policy areas, a decision that undermines the right to information enshrined in the Constitution of Nepal and the Right to Information Act. 

IPI monitors and collects data on press freedom violations in Pakistan as part of a cross-border project that brings together partner media outlets in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal to create public awareness about attacks on journalists and highlight the decline of press freedom across South Asia.