Repeated efforts were made to bring Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) President Rabi Lamichhane and Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah together ahead of the election scheduled for March 5, 2026.
Sudan Gurung, the founder of Hami Nepal group who rose to prominence after the Gen Z movement, had also been working toward that end. While Lamichhane was still in custody, Gurung had met him and urged him to work together with Balen.
The RSP itself had decided to move forward in collaboration with alternative political forces.
Mayor Balen’s political ambitions had also grown with the Gen Z movement. However, he had not been able to decide whether or not to enter parliamentary politics. He had been holding discussions with figures ranging from Sumana Shrestha, who had left the RSP, to Kulman Ghising.
In this situation, it was former RSP lawmaker Asim Shah who arranged for Lamichhane and Balen to hold marathon discussions lasting around six hours on Monday night.
Asim’s ancestral home in Kamal Pokhari, Kathmandu, which he has been using as his office recently, was the venue for the meeting.
Film director Shah and Mayor Balen, who comes from a background in rap music, had known each other for a long time. Balen used to visit Asim’s house frequently since it is close to the KMC’s office at Kathmandu Plaza. Since Asim is a former lawmaker from his party, it was easy for Lamichhane to meet Balen there.
Speaking to Setopati, Asim said the two held open and wide-ranging discussions for six hours on politics, personal matters, and each other’s habits.
“It was an intimate conversation, everything from music to joys and sorrows was discussed,” Asim said. “It was like families agreeing to a marriage and then giving the bride and groom time alone to talk.”
He added, “It was like the boy and girl fall deeply in love after the families send them into a room to talk. They talked for six hours.”
Asim said that although he tried to keep the meeting confidential, it eventually became public.
“I had told both of them to come using different vehicles,” he said, “but the news couldn’t be kept hidden.”
Asim said that while there was discussion about the upcoming House of Representatives election, some conversations were held one-on-one, so he was not aware of all details.
“This meeting was important in determining whether Rabi passed Balen’s test and whether Balen passed Rabi’s,” Shah said. “They discussed how they could move forward together based on their understanding of each other.”
According to RSP leaders, Lamichhane is prepared to head into the election by projecting Balen as the future prime minister. Although Lamichhane is eligible to contest the election, he cannot become a lawmaker, minister, or prime minister due to an ongoing money-laundering case against him in the Kaski District Court.
Members of Balen’s team say that Balen is also ready to accept Lamichhane’s leadership if he wins his case.
However, a leader close to Balen said that Balen himself wants to contest the election against KP Sharma Oli from Jhapa.
“Balen dai often says there’s no fun in winning an election unless he defeats KP Oli,” the leader said. “His desire is to defeat Oli himself.”
Balen’s home is in Sinamangal, which falls under Kathmandu Constituency No. 2. However, it is still unclear where he will contest the election from, or whether he will even contest the election. According to the leader, Balen remains undecided.
“Sometimes he says he will contest the election, other times he says he will complete his term as mayor,” the leader said. “But it seems he has accepted the request from those around him who say he must contribute to the country now.”
According to RSP leaders, discussions will now also focus on how to work together in the party and the government and how to collaborate for the election.
On Tuesday, Lamichhane also gave a brief response in Chitwan regarding his meeting with Balen.
When journalists asked whether there was an agreement to propose Balen as a prime ministerial candidate, Lamichhane replied, “We have not entered that stage yet.”
Lamichhane said that they are still in the process of understanding each other.
“First, we need to know each other. We need to talk. We need to understand where we stand and what things are like,” he said. “We need to exchange information about the situation. Don’t rush, we’ll gradually move into the political phase.”
