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 in the Unity Centre led to the formation of the CPN (Maoist), whose first conference was also held in the district. The party later launched an armed insurgency that significantly altered Nepal’s political landscape.

The political context has changed significantly since those clandestine meetings during the partyless monarchical rule. Yet Chitwan’s role as a venue for major political gatherings has remained constant, from underground communist conventions to the RSP’s assembly in the post-Gen Z revolt political era.

Holding the convention in June presents practical challenges for the RSP, with organisers preparing for intense heat and possible monsoon rain. In contrast, organisers of the Unity Centre convention 34 years ago focused on keeping the gathering hidden from state authorities. At the time, the assembly was held in Shitalpur, a remote southern area of Madi in Chitwan.

Gopilal Devkota, a member of the erstwhile event management committee of the Maoists and now based in Bharatpur, recalled collecting timber, beams, poles and thatch from nearby forests to build temporary huts for delegates. Although Madi was not far from Bharatpur, poor transport links made it highly isolated at the time.

Reaching Madi required crossing dense forests of Chitwan National Park, making it suitable for a secret political gathering. To reach Shitalpur, one had to travel inland from Chirauli, about 40 kilometres south of Bharatpur.

Since the convention was scheduled for November, 1991, Devkota said preparations began a month prior. “We cut posts, beams and thatch in the forest but did not bring them to the village immediately. People would have become suspicious, so we hid everything in the forest,” he said.

A team of 42 local residents handled logistics. “If anyone asked, we told them we were setting up a poultry farm,” he said. Two days before the inauguration on November 27, materials were transported overnight and stored near the village. Construction of temporary huts began the following evening under the cover of darkness.

Devkota said it took around 12 hours to build the huts for delegates. The Unity Centre had been formed through the merger of several communist factions, including the CPN (Fourth Convention), CPN (Masal), Proletarian Workers’ Organisation, a faction of the CPN (Masal) led by Baburam Bhattarai, and the CPN Janamukhi. The convention, attended by leaders including Nirmal Lama, Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Ruplal Bishwakarma, concluded on December 2. However, the unity forged in those temporary shelters did not last long, as ideological differences soon emerged.

Phanindra Acharya, then a central committee member of the Unity Centre, said internal theoretical disputes led to a split, with 19 of the 37 central members breaking away to form the CPN (Maoist). Acharya aligned with the faction led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal. He said the party’s national conference formally adopting the name ‘Maoist’ was held in May 1994 at a poultry farm in Jyamire, eastern Chitwan. The party announced its armed insurgency against the monarchy on February 13, 1996. The decade-long conflict ended with a peace agreement, paving the way for the republic and federal system. Pushpa Kamal Dahal later served as prime minister multiple times, while the party continued to experience splits and mergers.

Historical records also show that the Communist Party of Nepal, the mother of all communist factions in the country, had planned its third national convention in Chitwan. According to Rajendra Prasad Regmi, a retired history professor who studied communist movements in Chitwan, a central committee meeting in August 1960 decided to hold the third national convention in Narayangadh starting February 18, 1961. However, King Mahendra dissolved Parliament, dismissed the elected government and banned political parties on December 15, 1960, preventing the convention from taking place.

Decades later, the CPN-UML successfully held its 10th national convention in Chitwan in 2021. The opening ceremony took place on the banks of the Narayani river in Narayangadh, while closed sessions were held in Sauraha. The opening drew large crowds along the riverbanks, featuring a massive stage and digital display boards. The closed sessions were held under large tents. Binod Shrestha, a UML leader at the time, said around Rs5 million was spent on stage construction alone across both venues.

Parbati Rawal, then district chair of the UML, said hosting the convention in Chitwan helped revive local tourism, which had been hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. “The convention was initially planned for Butwal, but we pushed for Chitwan. It became an opportunity to link a political event with tourism revival,” she said.

Chitwan, a district in inner Tarai, is easily accessible from all over the country. Bharatpur, the district headquarters, is a sprawling metropolis not far away from Kathmandu and Pokhara, two of Nepal’s most densely populated valleys.

Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) chair Rabi Lamichhane first contested parliamentary elections from Chitwan and has since been elected three times from Chitwan-2, including a by-election, with large margins. Following those victories, he supported hosting the party’s first national convention in the district.

In view of the summer heat and monsoon rains, the initial plan was to erect a bamboo canopy at the Hotel Star grounds in Ratnanagar, Tandi, but the venue was later shifted to Bharatpur owing to security and logistical concerns. The closed sessions will be held at the exhibition centre of the Chitwan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a permanent structure offering protection from weather conditions.

For the opening ceremony at the Guest House grounds in front of the District Police Office, a temporary tensile structure known as ‘German Hanger’ has been installed. Introduced in Nepal eight years ago by Media Space Solutions, German Hangers have been widely used for exhibitions and political conventions. The structure features an aluminium frame and tensile fabric roofing, designed to withstand sun, rain, wind and fire.

Srijal Bhattarai, managing director of Media Space Solutions, said the main section of the hanger measures 20 metres by 75 metres, with two additional sections measuring 20 metres by 30 metres each. The venue will accommodate 5,000 chairs, along with standing space for additional attendees.

Chitwan has evolved from hosting political gatherings in thatch huts to modern conventions held under German Hangers. While the infrastructure has changed significantly, the district continues to serve as a key venue for political events that have shaped Nepal’s modern political history.

1,500 security personnel deployed on site

Preparations are complete for the Rastriya Swatantra Party’s national convention, set to begin on Sunday at the Guest House grounds in Bharatpur. The opening ceremony will be held under the weather-proof German Hanger, while closed sessions, running until Tuesday, will take place at the nearby Industrial Exhibition Centre of the Chitwan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Rajan Gautam, an RSP central committee member and coordinator of the accommodation and catering sub-committee, said around 1,500 hotel rooms will be needed for the delegates. As Bharatpur lacks sufficient hotel capacity, delegates are being accommodated in Sauraha and elsewhere in the district.

Delegates will pay for their own accommodation. Gautam said hotel options, facilities and prices were shared in advance, allowing delegates to choose and book rooms independently. The party will provide catering at the closed-session venue.

Superintendent Rameshwar Poudel, chief of Chitwan Police, said 165 traffic officers will manage vehicular movement.

Two parking zones have been designated. Vehicles arriving from the east will park near the Bharatpur Central Bus Park, while those coming from the west, Kathmandu and Pokhara will be directed to the open grounds near Birendra Multiple Campus at Bishal Chowk along the bypass.