Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah Set to Challenge for PM with RSP Backing

Nepal's Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and the Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan, Balendra Shah, struck a deal on Sunday morning, setting him to be the party's parliamentary leader and its prime ministerial candidate for the national elections set to take place in March next year.

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The “broad unity” between the party and the Kathmandu Mayor comes ahead of the upcoming House of Representatives elections next year.

As per the 7-point agreement, RSP chair Rabi Lamichhane will continue as the party’s central chairman, while Shah will be presented as the party’s parliamentary leader after the elections and its prime ministerial candidate.

The two sides have been in talks on cooperation and unity for weeks, with Lamichhane and Shah holding a series of formal and informal meetings.