Nepal’s royalist opposition party, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), has formally split after months of internal conflict, with a faction led by General Secretary Dhawal Shamsher Rana announcing its departure from the party on Thursday.

A total of 183 leaders and members, including several senior figures, have quit the RPP. Those leaving alongside Rana include Vice-chair Mukund Shyam Giri, former minister Dilnath Giri, leader Keshav Raj Shrestha, and Work Execution Committee member Narayan Prasad Koirala. Sagun Sundar Lawati, whose responsibilities as party spokesperson had previously been revoked, has also left the party.

Most of those resigning are members of the party’s central and provincial committees.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Rana said the breakaway faction would soon announce the formation of a new political party. He said the group had endured a “difficult and frustrating” situation within the RPP over the past four years.

The split is the culmination of a long-running power struggle between party chair Rajendra Lingden and Rana, one of the party’s most prominent leaders.

The rivalry between the two camps has dominated internal party politics since Lingden became chairman four years ago. The party establishment has accused Rana of supporting the restoration of an active monarchy and of acting against the party’s official policy of advocating a constitutional monarchy. It has also been alleged that he sought to weaken the party organisation.

Rana’s faction, however, has accused Lingden of running the party in an authoritarian manner and using disciplinary action to silence leaders and members who expressed dissenting views. The faction said its campaign within the party was aimed at resisting what it described as arbitrary decision-making by the leadership.

In March, a gathering organised in Kathmandu under Rana’s leadership demanded that the party announce the date of its next general convention within a week. The meeting sent a three-point memorandum to Lingden, urging the party to schedule its national convention for May.

According to Rana’s supporters, the party leadership failed to call the convention despite repeated demands, further deepening divisions within the organisation and ultimately leading to the split.

The RPP is one of Nepal’s main royalist parties and has long advocated the restoration of a constitutional monarchy and Nepal’s status as a Hindu state. However, internal disagreements over strategy, leadership and the future direction of the royalist movement have increasingly strained the party in recent years.