After months-long negotiations, two right-wing forces—Rastriya Prajatantra Party-Nepal and the RPP—are set to become one after the latter agreed to its abandoned agenda of reinstating Nepal as a Hindu state.

Following their unification scheduled for Tuesday, the new party will have a combined 37 seats in Parliament, with a 6.35 percent share of the lawmakers.

In the second Constituent Assembly election in 2013, the two parties had got 9.4 percent votes—6.66 percent by the RPP-Nepal and 2.74 percent by the RPP—from 9.46 million votes cast under the proportional representation system.

The RPP-N has been advocating the reinstatement of monarchy and Hindu state while speaking against federalism. “We have arrived at the same point on Hindu state but we still have differences over monarchy and federalism,” said RPP General Secretary Buddhiman Tamang. “The general convention to be held by mid-April next year will decide on the issues.”

The two sides remain divided over joining the government led by CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal. The RPP voted for Dahal and the RPP-N against him.

Tamang said a joint meeting of the party’s working committee to be held within 15 days of the merger would take a decision whether or not to join the government.

“The merger is out of our realisation that there is still the need for a nationalist democratic party with a right-of-the-centre philosophy,” said Mohan Shrestha, deputy spokesperson for the RPP-N.

According to the merger agreement, RPP-N chief Kamal Thapa will chair the new party while RPP Chairman Pashupati Shumsher Rana will be named the second-in-command, National Chairman, of the new outfit.

The RPP, which had been demanding the executive chairman’s post, agreed to the second position after the RPP-N, which is double in size, did not relent. In exchange for the top position, the RPP-N has agreed to give the RPP an equal share—150 members—in the Central Working Committee. Rana will also lead the directive committee, which will take decisions on the party’s activities and selection of ministers if the party is to join the government.

The two parties are also divided over the electoral symbol, though they have no differences over the RPP-N flag carrying the emblem of a cow.

Under pressure from their cadres, the parties started the unification bid a year ago.

The RPP was formed in 1990 with Thapa as a key central member. However, the party split on January 9, 2006 due to irreconcilable differences following former king Gyanendra Shah’s taking over the state powers. Thapa’s faction, which welcomed Shah’s move, formed the new party.