Chitwan, June 22 -- The first general convention of the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) opened in Bharatpur, Chitwan, on Sunday, but the party entered the landmark gathering without completing its organisational process in most of Madhesh Province.

The party failed to hold district conventions in seven of the province's eight districts, leaving Parsa as the only district where a convention took place. As a result, delegates from the remaining districts were chosen through existing ad hoc committees rather than elected at district conventions.

The development is significant because Madhesh has become one of the RSP's strongest electoral bases. The party secured 57.33 percent of proportional representation votes in the province in t...