Rathindra Bose, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from the Cooch Behar Dakshin Assembly seat, was on Friday (May 15, 2026) elected as the Speaker of West Bengal Legislative Assembly.
Mr. Bose was elected the Speaker of the 18th West Bengal Legislative Assembly unanimously through a voice vote.
The 65-year-old politician is a Chartered Accountant by profession. He defeated Trinamool Congress’s Avijit De Bhaumik by a margin of 23,284 votes.
Mr. Bose has been associated with the BJP and RSS for the past several years.
This is the first occasion when a leader from north Bengal has been selected for the Speaker’s post. Mr. Bose, who has been serving as the BJP’s State vice-president, is known for his strong organisational skills in the region.
During the Trinamool Congress regime, the Speaker of the West Bengal Assembly was Biman Banerjee, a lawyer and Trinamool MLA from Baruipur Paschim constituency. Mr. Banerjee has managed to win his seat in this election.
During the Left Front era, Syed Abdul Mansur Habibullah and Hashim Abdul Halim were the Speakers of the Assembly, respectively.
Usually, political parties nominate someone who is a lawyer or a lawyer by profession as the Speaker. However, the prevailing practice has been broken this time with the nomination of Rathindra Bose.
Published - May 15, 2026 11:57 am IST
