The Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) is set to stage a demonstration at Balkhu in Kathmandu on Tuesday.

The RPP, which is led by Rajendra Lingden, plans to focus on demanding the release of senior party leaders—Vice-chair Rabindra Mishra and General Secretary Dhawal Shamsher Rana—who were arrested during a pro-monarchy protest at Tinkune on March 28.

Leaders said in its protest on Tuesday, the RPP will denounce the ‘use of excessive force by government’ on March 28. Both the government and the royalist camp have traded accusations, each blaming the other for inciting violence during the Tinkune protest, which led to the death of two persons, including a TV journalist.

Organised under the slogan ‘Let’s change the system to change the situation’, the RPP’s protest will be led by party chair Lingden.

RPP has issued directives for party leaders and cadres from Kathmandu Valley and various districts to participate in the protest.

Although the RPP had initially sought permission from the administration to hold its demonstration at Bhrikutimandap, the authorities declined the request, citing ongoing protests in the area by teachers and the Rastriya Janamorcha.

The administration asked the RPP to organise their protest either at Sifalchaur or at Balkhu. The RPP then chose Balkhu, according to Sagun Lawoti, a spokesperson for RPP. “We believe our protest will be peaceful,” Lawoti said.

Security officials expect the rally to be less violent and chaotic than the one held by the pro-monarchy group under the leadership of Panchayat-era leader Nabaraj Subedi and controversial businessman Durga Prasai on March 28.

Kathmandu District Police, in coordination with the District Administration Office, has prepared a security strategy to manage the Tuesday protest to be organised by the RPP, which is the fifth-largest party in the House of Representatives.

“We will not allow a repeat of a situation like the one on March 28,” a senior security officer told the Post. “Police will ensure law and order is in place while urging protesters to maintain calm.”

In addition to the death of two persons, dozens of others sustained severe injuries during the Tinkune protest. The protesters resorted to arson, attacked media houses, party offices and private as well as public properties and looted a supermarket.

Police officials say they expect Tuesday’s protest to be peaceful as it is being organised by a responsible political party.

According to Dinesh Kumar Acharya, spokesperson for the Nepal Police, over 2,000 personnel from the Nepal Police will be deployed for the RPP demonstration. He also mentioned that the protest will be monitored through CCTV and drone cameras.

The Armed Police Force has stated that the number of personnel deployed for Tuesday’s protest will vary depending on whether the demonstration remains peaceful or not. However, a senior official from the force indicated the possibility of mobilising around 2,000 armed police personnel.

“We expect the demonstration, organised by a party that holds 14 seats in the Parliament, to be peaceful,” the officer added.

The security layout includes three layers: Nepal Police in the inner ring, Armed Police Force in the middle, and plain-cloth police officers on the outermost layer. Authorities have warned of firm action if any protester resorts to vandalism or arson.

Though the RPP will lead the protest on Tuesday, they will be supported by the Joint People’s Movement formed with a mission to reinstate monarchy in the country, the same group that organised the March 28 protest that turned violent. The Tinkune protest was backed by other pro-monarchy forces such as the Lingden-led RPP and Kamal Thapa-led RPP-Nepal.

Jagman Gurung, acting coordinator of the Joint People's Movement, stated that they support the RPP protest. However, he added that he has not yet decided whether he will personally take part in the demonstration.

Following the protest on that day, Nabaraj Subedi, coordinator of the Joint People’s Movement, has been kept under house arrest, while mobilisation coordinator Dhawal Shumsher Rana and member secretary Rabindra Mishra remain in police custody. ‘Field commander’ of that protest, Durga Prasai, is currently absconding after a warrant was issued for his arrest.

After Subedi was put under house arrest, Gurung was appointed as the acting coordinator of the movement.

“I will only participate if the RPP sends me a formal invitation letter to participate in the protest,” Gurung said.

He said they would support the RPP’s protest and call the public to join the peaceful march carrying the national flags.

There appears to be a likelihood that the same groups of people who participated in the Tinkune protests will also take part in Tuesday’s protest. Gurung also admitted it. However, he said that their previous protest was intended to be peaceful, and he believes Tuesday’s demonstration will remain calm.

“We are not the organisers of Tuesday’s protest, we are merely extending our support,” Gurung told the Post. “Therefore, how the event is managed is not in our hands. It is up to the RPP.”

Following the March 28 demonstration, the RPP stated that it had been a mistake to declare Durga Prasai as the “field commander”.

Gurung, however, said that they do not share RPP’s views on Prasai’s appointment as the field commander.

Gurung states that the Joint People’s Movement Committee has neither dismissed Prasai as the commander nor is it planning to do so. This raises the question: why is RPP, which, soon after the incident of March 28, acknowledged that declaring Prasai as the protest commander was a mistake, accepting the support for their protest from the committee which continues to back Prasai?

RPP leaders could not provide a clear answer to this. However, one party official suggested that at the time, Prasai’s unruly behaviour appeared to jeopardise the movement, which may have prompted the party to make that statement.