The Pulse | Politics | South Asia

The Power Struggle at the Heart of Nepal’s Ruling Party

Differences between Prime Minister Balendra Shah and RSP chief Rabi Lamichhane, two politicians with competing centers of authority, were inevitable.

Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah, Apr. 16, 2026

The most immediate threat to Nepal’s ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) comes not from outside but from within the outfit. Ever since Balendra Shah, the erstwhile popular mayor of the national capital, Kathmandu, joined the party at the end of 2025, there have been speculations over Shah’s ability to work with RSP founding chairperson Rabi Lamichhane.

In the March 2026 elections, the RSP romped home to victory by riding the wave of antipathy against the old political parties, winning nearly a two-thirds majority in the federal lower house. Both during the elections and in their aftermath, the two leaders continued to project unity. Yet signs of strain are already visible.

According to a pre-poll agreement between Shah and Lamichhane, if the RSP got to form the government, Shah as prime minister would look after state affairs while Lamichhane managed the party.

It was a marriage of convenience. As the mayor of Kathmandu, Shah had developed the image of an efficient technocrat among the educated urban voters. Lamichhane, meanwhile, was popular among the less educated, rural masses. Together, they could have a pan-Nepal appeal. Lamichhane’s legal troubles, which stood in his way of being prime minister, also made it easier for him to project Shah as the party’s prime ministerial candidate.

Even at the time of its signing, the deal appeared idealistic. By design, in Nepal’s parliamentary system, the head of the party leading the government dictates its functioning. Often, unlike the current arrangement in the RSP, the same person heads both the party and the government.

It was thus only a matter of time before Shah started seeking greater space in the RSP, if only to consolidate his hold on the government.

The recent RSP general convention, the party’s supreme decision-making body, marked Shah’s debut as a political leader within the organization. Before that, he had avoided all party-related gatherings.

Nearly three weeks after the general convention, the RSP has been unable to give a full shape to its central committee or to fill all of its office-bearer positions as Shah and Lamichhane tussle over the pick of nominees. Perhaps an even bigger sign of strain is the party statute endorsed by the convention. It has a provision whereby the party chair can change the RSP parliamentary party leader if the latter veers off the official party line. This is not a minor arrangement. If Shah, the current RSP parliamentary leader, is removed from the position for some reason, his hold on the prime minister’s office would become untenable.

The new party statute also provides for another senior leader besides Shah. This appears to be another way for Lamichhane to check Shah’s growing influence in the party.

Even in the past, such top-down, personality-driven unity in Nepali political forces tended to quickly unravel — most famously in 2021, when the Nepal Communist Party, with similar strength to........

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