Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) President Rabi Lamichhane has made it clear that his party will not engage in politics driven by revenge.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the party’s First General Convention in Bharatpur, Chitwan, on Sunday, Lamichhane said the party would respect the public mandate it has received and would not seek retaliation against anyone.
He said political animosities among parties should end from this point onward, adding that all political forces should work together in cooperation and collaboration for the benefit of the country and its people.
Stressing that factionalism would not be allowed within the party, he said that if the RSP could learn from the experiences of older political parties and move forward without internal factions, no force would be able to defeat it. “If the RSP falls, it will stumble over its own knees; no one else has the strength to bring it down,” he said. “The fruit produced by factions and sub-factions is poisonous. If such fruit grows, there comes a point when the entire tree must be cut down. We are now at a stage where we must decide what kind of seed we want to plant.”
Saying that the RSP is increasingly emerging as a common political platform for the country, he said people from non-political backgrounds have also begun entering politics in recent years.
Lamichhane also suggested that the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML address the problems visible within their respective parties, warning that failure to resolve them could create difficulties for the country. “We will have to answer to history. It is not enough for our party alone to perform well for national politics to improve; other parties must also reform,” he said. “If the challenges seen within the Nepali Congress and UML are not resolved, the country will face problems.”
Lamichhane further said the government has been moving forward in line with prior agreements and that the administration led by Prime Minister Balendra Shah is working toward its intended goals.
“As per the prior understanding on running the government, the ball is now at senior RSP leader Balendra Shah’s feet. It is his responsibility to score the goal,” he said. “Even if the ball accidentally comes to my feet, my duty is to pass it back to him.”
