BJP MLA Rathindra Bose to be party’s candidate for Speaker’s post

The Bharatiya Janata Party leadership in West Bengal has selected Rathindra Bose as the party’s candidate for the post of Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.

The presidential election will be held on Friday, May 15, 2026. Going by the numbers, the BJP has a clear majority with 207 seats in the 294-member Assembly.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari announced the decision on Thursday, May 14, 2026, and appealed to the Opposition parties to unanimously elect him as the Speaker.

“Shri Rathindra Bose, Bharatiya Janata Party MLA of Cooch Behar Dakshin (South) Constituency has been nominated as our Candidate for the post of Hon’ble Speaker of the 18th West Bengal Legislative Assembly. I hope his candidacy will be supported by all and he will be elected unanimously,” Mr. Adhikari said on social media.

After being nominated as the BJP’s Speaker candidate, Mr. Bose said, “I will fulfill the responsibility given to me by the party. If necessary, I will seek advice from experienced members of the House.”

The BJP MLA filed his nomination papers for the President’s post in the presence of the Chief Minister and other BJP MLAs.

Rathindra Bose, the first-time BJP MLA, is a chartered accountant by profession. Before entering active politics, he was associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He defeated Trinamool candidate Abhijit De Bhowmik from Cooch Behar South constituency in the 2026 Assembly elections by over 23,000 votes. Rathindra is contesting MLA for the first time.

During the Trinamool Congress rule, the Speaker of the West Bengal Assembly was Biman Banerjee, a lawyer and Trinamool MLA from Baruipur Paschim constituency. Mr. Banerjee managed to win her seat in this election.

During the Left Front period, Sayyid Abdul Mansur Habibullah and Hashim Abdul Halim became the Speakers of the Parliament, respectively. Political parties usually nominate a lawyer or a lawyer by profession as Speaker of the Parliament. However, this time the prevailing practice was overturned with the nomination of Rathindra Bose.