Balendra Shah set to lead RSP parliamentary party as statute amendment underway

KATHMANDU: The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has decided to amend its party statute before proceeding with the selection of its parliamentary party leader, a move aimed at making the leadership election process more practical following the party’s strong performance in Nepal’s recent parliamentary elections.

According to party officials, the current provision in the RSP statute allows all general members of the party to vote in the election of the parliamentary party leader. However, the leadership now believes that such a system is not practical for parliamentary leadership selection, prompting preparations for a statutory amendment.

Under Clause 66 of the party statute, which outlines the process of selecting the parliamentary party leader, Sub-clause 8(b) states that “all general members of the party shall have the right to vote” in the leadership election. RSP leaders say this provision will be revised to reflect a more workable mechanism aligned with parliamentary practice.

RSP joint spokesperson Pratibha Rawal said the party is preparing to update the statute in accordance with evolving political realities. “We will amend the statute wherever necessary to make the process of electing the parliamentary party leader more practical and timely,” Rawal said.

Party leaders have concluded that allowing all party members to participate in the vote is not feasible, particularly after the party secured a large parliamentary presence. As a result, the party is working on a new method that will likely restrict the voting process to elected lawmakers.

The current statute also mentions that the parliamentary party leader should be elected from among members elected through both the first-past-the-post and proportional representation systems, with the candidate securing at least 50 percent of the votes.

Within the party, preparations are underway to select senior leader Balen Shah as the parliamentary party leader through consensus.

According to RSP’s internal arrangements, the parliamentary party leader will lead the government if the party forms one. With the party emerging as the dominant force in the parliamentary elections, the leadership selection has become a crucial step toward government formation.

The decision to support Shah for the parliamentary leadership follows a prior political understanding reached during the unification process between RSP and the political faction associated with the then Mayor of Kathmandu, Balen Shah. The agreement, reached on Poush 13 (December 28, 2025), states that Rabi Lamichhane would remain the party’s central chairman, while Shah would become the parliamentary party leader and the party’s prime ministerial candidate after the parliamentary elections.

RSP officials say the leadership selection process will formally begin once candidates elected under the proportional representation system receive their official certificates from the Election Commission Nepal.

The results of the House of Representatives elections held on Falgun 21 (March 5, 2026) have already been announced for both direct and proportional representation categories. Based on the combined results, RSP has secured 182 seats, bringing the party close to a two-thirds majority in the federal parliament.

Before forming a government, the party must formally elect its parliamentary party leader. Party leaders say the statute amendment will be finalized once the list of proportional representation lawmakers is confirmed.

According to Rawal, discussions within the party are ongoing regarding the submission of the proportional representation list after receiving a formal letter from the Election Commission. The commission recently requested political parties to submit their finalized lists of proportional representation lawmakers.

RSP has secured 57 seats under the proportional representation system. As required by Nepal’s electoral inclusion rules, the party must nominate 48 women lawmakers among those proportional representation seats.

The amendment to the party statute and the subsequent election of the parliamentary party leader are expected to be completed soon, clearing the way for the formation of a new government led by the RSP.