KATHMANDU: A faction led by Dr. Dhaval Shumsher Rana, which recently split from the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), is set to register a new political party named Jaya Nepal Party at the Election Commission on Thursday.
The Rana faction had earlier announced a unity agreement with a group led by royalist businessman Durga Prasai. However, even before the party is formally registered, the alliance now appears close to collapsing.
The dispute escalated after Prasai, in an interview with a YouTube channel on Monday, made a series of allegations against Rana. Leaders close to Rana say those remarks have nearly ended the possibility of meaningful cooperation between the two sides.
Mukund Shyam Giri, a leader from the Rana camp, told Nepal Press that preparations for registering the party on August 13 are moving ahead as planned.
“We still expect them (the Durga camp) to come. Even if they do not, we will not stop now,” Giri said.
Under the earlier understanding, Rana was to become party chair while Prasai would hold the position of “Supreme Leader.” The arrangement has now become contentious, with disagreement over who would rank higher in the party hierarchy.
The Rana faction insists that the chairperson must unquestionably hold the top position, while Prasai argues that no one can be above the “Supreme Leader.”
Prasai’s camp has also demanded that the role, duties and powers of the Supreme Leader be clearly defined, with executive authority shared between the chairperson and the Supreme Leader. The group is further seeking the authority for Prasai to sign off on election ticket distribution, a proposal the Rana camp has rejected.
A meeting of the task forces from both sides was held on Monday but failed to produce an agreement. Despite that, leaders from both camps say the possibility of reconciliation has not been completely ruled out.
Giri said the Rana faction still preferred to move forward together.
“We are in favor of staying united if possible. The statements made by Mr. Prasai are his personal views. I do not think cooperation will necessarily break down because of that,” he said.
Madhav Kalpit, a leader from Prasai’s camp, also said his side remained committed to unity and claimed that dialogue was continuing, with the possibility still open that both groups could register the party together on Thursday.
“This does not mean the alliance has already collapsed. I am in favor of reaching an agreement by any means,” Kalpit said.
He added that Prasai’s remarks against Rana should not be viewed as a serious threat to the unity process.
“A person who speaks from morning till evening sometimes says the right thing and sometimes the wrong thing. I do not think those comments should be taken too seriously,” he said.
However, Radhika Joshi, press coordinator for proposed chairperson Rana, said the prospects for cooperation had become very weak.
“The things Mr. Durga Prasai said in the interview have damaged the atmosphere for cooperation. We are preparing to register the party on August 13 in our own way. We will accommodate individuals from their side who choose to join us, but the basis for institutional cooperation no longer exists,” she said.
The two sides had previously agreed to form a 101-member central committee, with 40 members from the Rana faction, 40 from the Prasai faction and the remaining 20 from other groups.
Joshi said the Election Commission has allotted a registration time of 12:30 pm on August 13 for the proposed Jaya Nepal Party.
