In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s violent protests in Nepal, photographs purporting to show the ritzy lifestyles enjoyed by the children of the country’s political elite were shared widely on social media.

They were tagged #nepokids, suggesting young people who had profited from their families’ connections, and they were condemned by many Nepalis as out-of-touch in a country where one in four live below the national poverty line.

It is not clear if these images were real or fabricated, but they have come to symbolize the corruption that many Nepalis say has widened inequality and enriched officials and their relatives.

The outrage has been one of the drivers of the protests, which were triggered by a social media ban but were fueled by years of resentment against those in power.

As part of Nepal’s #nepokids social media trend, users upload videos and posts to TikTok and X that purport to show the children of Nepali political figures on luxury vacations and wearing fancy clothing, juxtaposed with scenes meant to show the everyday struggles of ordinary Nepalis.

Among the most frequently shared images was a photo claiming to show a son of a minister posing with boxes labeled Louis Vuitton and Cartier, arranged into a Christmas tree. Another video stitched photos the user claimed was the son of a former judge dining at high-end restaurants and posing next to a Mercedes car.