Internal Debate Rages in Nepal's RPP Party Following Election Results

Kathmandu. A debate regarding party restructuring has begun within the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP). The discussion about restructuring has started following the election results where the party won 1 seat in the direct election and 4 seats in the proportional representation category in the elections held on Falgun 21.

General Secretary Sharad Raj Pathak stated through social media that the debate on party restructuring needs to be intensified.

‘If the Rastriya Prajatantra Party is to be elevated above the state of merely being a flickering national party, and transformed into a credible and powerful interventionist/transformative force in national politics, an immediate and extensive reorganization is extremely necessary,’ Pathak wrote on his social media platform, Facebook.

He also stated that a review and necessary changes to the party's name, election symbol, and leadership from the center down to the grassroots level are essential for this purpose.

‘For this, a review and necessary changes to the party's name, election symbol, and leadership from the center down to the grassroots level are essential,’ General Secretary Pathak wrote.

He claimed that while the RPP's agenda does not have a major problem, there are issues with the leaders' thinking and working style. ‘I am writing this comment despite the possibility of intense verbal abuse against me for writing publicly like this, but I am not concerned about that,’ he said. ‘In my impartial and detailed evaluation, the RPP's agenda does not have a big problem. The problem lies in our thinking and working style.’ Stating that the problem lies within the powerful tendencies inside the party, he mentioned that the issue is in largely ignoring the dimensions of modern-era politics and instead undermining them.

‘If we proceed with this same style and mindset, it will be difficult for the party to find suitable candidates who can influence the general voters in the upcoming local and provincial elections, except for exceptional places,’ Pathak stated. General Secretary Pathak also demanded that the issues he raised initiate an intensive debate down to the grassroots level of the party.