Chitwan, June 20 -- Chitwan, located near the geographical centre of Nepal, has long been a preferred venue for major political conventions. The district has hosted influential communist factional conventions that have shaped national politics, and now serves as the venue for the first-ever general convention of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), a relatively new force that entered government with a sweeping mandate following the 'Gen Z' movement last year.

Earlier, the CPN-UML held its 10th national convention in the district in November 2021. Three decades earlier, in November 1991, the Communist Party of Nepal (Unity Centre), formed through a merger of various leftist factions, also held its convention in Chitwan. A subsequent split ...