CHITWAN: The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) officially commenced its three-day first general convention today in Bharatpur, Chitwan, marking its transition into a formalized, legal organization.

Hosted by General Secretary Kabindra Burlakoti, the inauguration saw a massive turnout of delegates and high-profile attendees, including party Chairman Rabi Lamichhane and Prime Minister Balendra Shah.

Less than four years after its founding, the RSP commands a near two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives and leads a majority government on its own; however, it faces the critical challenge of unifying a scattered membership and defining its ambiguous political ideology regarding federalism, secularism, and inclusiveness.

Prior to electing new leadership via electronic voting, the party finalized crucial statute amendments to align itself with the national framework—proposing to formally incorporate the word “republic” under constitutional socialism and expanding its central committee to 158 members to prevent internal factionalism.

Financially, the landmark event is estimated to cost around Rs 40 million, funded entirely by well-wisher contributions and registration fees from roughly 4,000 delegates, including over 170 international representatives.

As the convention proceeds through June 23, analysts view this event as the RSP’s ultimate “moment of truth” to see if a newly dominant political force can maintain structural unity where past majority governments in Nepal have failed.