Rastriya Swatantra Party Fails to Hold Madhes Province Conventions Amidst Internal Disputes

Kathmandu. Amidst grand preparations for the first general convention of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), conventions have not even been held in the Madhes Province. RSP will be participating in the general convention with representatives from the old ad-hoc committees from Madhes.

The first general convention of RSP is scheduled to be held in Chitwan from Asar 7, 8, and 9. Although district and provincial conventions must be completed before the general convention, conventions have not been held in 7 out of 8 districts in Madhes. Due to the absence of district conventions, provincial conventions could not be held either.

In the Madhes Province, which has eight districts, conventions could not be held in seven districts except Parsa due to internal disputes.

The dispute that started after the party dissolved the Bara district committee and the fire of internal conflict spread to all other seven districts, leading the Central Election Commission to postpone the convention until further notice. The commission did not dare to hold the convention before the general convention due to security risks.

While the entire Madhes is affected by internal disputes, the Parsa district convention has been completed peacefully. However, even there, a clash situation arose when the election process was advanced on Jestha 23. But on Jestha 24, leadership was selected peacefully due to the coordinating role of MP and Chairman Buddhiprasad (Hari) Pant, elected from Parsa-1.

Secretary of the Central Organization Department, Shankar Shrestha, had reached Birgunj to resolve the dispute. With the agreement of the MPs from all four constituencies of Parsa and Election Chief Dr. Nandan Yadav, in his presence, the dispute over representatives was resolved. In the electoral competition, Pant and MP Sushil Kanu from Parsa-2 competed. Pant is the founding chairman. Pant defeated Kanu by a margin of 48 votes. He ensured the victory of his entire panel.

The main reason for the escalation of disputes in Madhes, according to district-level leaders, is that the MPs elected from Madhes won tickets during the elections but could not integrate into the party organization, and those who came from old parties could not embrace the party's policies, methods, and regulations. In particular, RSP leaders and cadres in Madhes are highly displeased with the working style of RSP Central Spokesperson Manish Jha, Madhes Province Chairman Tapeshwor Yadav, and proportional representative MP Purushottam Yadav.

MP and Madhes Province General Secretary Ganesh Dhimal, elected from Bara-1, claimed that problems also increased as the party grew. "This is a long-standing problem in Madhes. As the party grew, we could not manage the disputes and therefore could not hold the convention," he said.

• How will representatives participate in the general convention?

According to RSP Central General Secretary Kabindra Burlakoti, conventions did not even start in Dhanusha, Saptari, Bara, and Sarlahi in the Madhes Province. Conventions in Siraha, Mahottari, and Rautahat started but were postponed due to disputes. MP and Province Deputy General Secretary Ganesh Dhimal, elected from Bara-1, said that representatives from municipalities and districts where conventions were held, and from ad-hoc committees where they were not, would participate.

According to Dhimal, in cases where conventions were held, representatives minuted by the municipal chairmen and committees will participate. This includes 2 people from municipalities, 1 from rural municipalities, 3 from sub-metropolitan cities, and 4 from metropolitan cities.

In municipalities, districts, and provinces where conventions were not held, ad-hoc committee chairmen will participate. Overall, 50 representatives from each district will participate, Dhimal informed. Members of central departments, former central members, provincial chairmen, representatives elected in 2079, and candidates will also be general convention representatives. He stated that all representatives from Feta Rural Municipality in Bara, which was won by the Bibeksheel Sajha, would participate.

Dhimal informed that two representatives from each electoral constituency will participate. Five people will participate from the ad-hoc district committee, with two women being mandatory. Since the Bara district committee has been dissolved, they will not be able to participate from the district committee. Similarly, ad-hoc provincial committees, departmental officials, and provincial commissions will all be general convention representatives.