Kathmandu Mayor Balen Shah named RSP’s Nepalese PM candidate

Kathmandu: The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), the fourth-largest political party in Nepal’s dissolved House of Representatives, will head into the upcoming parliamentary elections by presenting Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah as its candidate for the country’s next Prime Minister.

RSP President Rabi Lamichhane and Shah, both widely regarded as popular political figures, reached an agreement on Sunday morning following a prolonged dialogue.

Under the deal, both sides agreed to come together under the single umbrella of the RSP as a political party and to share power between the two leaders.

According to the seven-point agreement, Lamichhane will serve as the Central President of the RSP, while Shah will become the leader of the parliamentary party and the party’s prime ministerial candidate after the upcoming election to the House of Representatives. With this agreement, Shah has taken a significant step toward emerging as a national leader from his position as a city mayor.

The two sides had been engaged in marathon discussions in recent days ahead of the elections scheduled for March 5 next year, aiming to strengthen their position to compete with established political parties. Both sides described the agreement as a move toward broad political unity.

Shah, usually a reclusive mayor who rarely gives media interviews, enjoys a cult following, particularly among young people, due to his efforts to improve public infrastructure in the city and his outspoken criticism of what he calls the “corrupt” leadership of established political parties.

An architect and rapper by profession, Shah was also seen as a kingmaker in the formation of the current government led by Prime Minister Sushila Karki following the Gen Z movement in early September.

Lamichhane, a former media personality with a strong youth following, had faced allegations of fraud involving cooperative institutions after entering politics and was jailed, but was recently released on bail following a court order. Since then, he has been making efforts to bring together Gen Z leaders and new political forces to strengthen his party’s position ahead of the elections.

“If Shah and Lamichhane join hands to contest the upcoming elections, they could emerge as strong political forces,” political analyst Arun Subedi earlier told IANS. “This could alter the balance of power in Nepal’s politics by undercutting the dominance of established parties.”

As per the agreement, the political party will continue to operate under the name RSP. The party flag will retain its existing blue background, with a white circular centre featuring a blue bell symbol. The party’s election symbol will be the bell, and its central office will remain in the Kathmandu Valley.

The agreement also states that responsibilities within the party will be assigned by appropriately integrating youth activists and experienced experts, with qualifications, inclusiveness, and public image serving as the key criteria. Relevant party documents will be updated with the Election Commission.

Both sides also agreed to pursue deep policy, institutional, and structural reforms required to achieve the national objectives of prosperity and social justice, laying the foundation for economic and social advancement and a cultured political practice, to transform Nepal into a respectable middle-income nation within the next ten years.

IANS