The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has decided to nominate its vice-chair Dolendra Prasad Aryal as its candidate for Speaker of the House of Representatives.

A parliamentary party meeting held on Thursday endorsed Aryal’s candidacy after party chair Ravi Lamichhane proposed his name for the post.

The decision comes as the RSP holds a commanding position in the federal parliament, with 182 seats in the 275-member House of Representatives, following a landslide victory in the March 5 elections held after the Gen Z-led protests in September last year.

The Federal Parliament Secretariat has published the schedule for the Speaker election, which is set to take place on April 5 at 11:00 am during a meeting of the House of Representatives.

According to the schedule, nominations for the Speaker’s post will be registered on Friday between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm, while the list of candidates will be published at 2:30 pm the same day.

If more than one candidate files nominations, an election will be held on April 5.

With its near two-thirds majority, the RSP is widely expected to secure the Speaker’s position.