Agreement Between Kulman Ghising and RSP Falls Apart Ahead of Elections

The agreement between Kulman Ghising, former Energy Minister and patron of Ujyaalo Nepal Party, and the Rastriya Swatantra Party (Raswapa) has broken down, ending plans to contest the upcoming elections together.

According to sources within Raswapa, the split occurred after Ghising made demands on December 14 that went against the earlier agreement. Discussions between Ghising and Raswapa Chairman Ravi Lamichhane had taken place on Friday and Saturday to finalize unity, during which Ghising raised six main demands.

A Raswapa leader said, “Ghising proposed that Raswapa should change its principles, appoint a senior vice-chairman and general secretary from his faction, change the party’s name, and give 30 central committee seats to his supporters. He also demanded that his faction decide the number of direct candidates, select the candidates themselves, and secure specific government positions for his faction after the election. With such demands, it was impossible to move forward with the agreement.”

Attempts to reach Ghising and his faction for comment were unsuccessful.

Raswapa spokesperson Manish Jha confirmed that unity is currently off the table. “For now, agreement is impossible. We cannot allow one faction to dictate the number of candidates or decide who they will be. Our party follows democratic principles and cannot adopt other principles. Changing the party’s name is also not possible,” he said. He added that the door for future cooperation remains open.

Earlier, Ghising had submitted 18 names for the proportional representation list, but only 14 were accepted. He was dissatisfied that the order of his candidates was placed lower and had requested at least 20 central committee seats, while Lamichhane offered only 8 to 12.

On December 29, Ujyaalo Nepal Party and RSP had announced a seven-point unity agreement to submit the proportional list together.

Ghising, who has served as Minister of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, and Physical Infrastructure and Urban Development, submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Sushila Karki at Baluwatar on Wednesday evening. At the time, he also indicated plans to move forward with Ujyaalo Nepal, stating that the seven-point agreement with RSP had not been implemented and that he was not a regular member of any party.