Why new Bengal Speaker Rathindra Bose has created history by marking several firsts
Rathindra Bose is a first-time MLA and the first North Bengal face to become Speaker; he is also the first CA to assume the post
Before Bose, all Bengal Speakers had either been advocates or involved in legal professions. He has also become the first chartered accountant to hold the post.
After being elected for the first time to the West Bengal Assembly, Coochbehar Dakshin MLA and BJP leader Rathindra Bose was unanimously elected Speaker of the House Friday.
Nominated by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, Bose, 65, succeeded former Speaker and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Biman Banerjee. He has created history by becoming the first legislator from North Bengal to assume the Speaker’s post.
In a post on social media Thursday, CM Adhikari said Bose had been nominated as the BJP’s Speaker candidate for the 18th Legislative Assembly, adding that “It is my firm belief that (Bose) will be unanimously elected as the Speaker”.
After his nomination, Bose said, “I will fulfill the responsibility given by the party. If necessary, I will take the advice of experienced members of the Assembly.”
A chartered accountant by profession who completed his BCom from the University of North Bengal, Bose hails from Cooch Behar district. He had been associated with the RSS for a long time before entering active politics.
In the recent Assembly elections, Bose defeated TMC candidate Abhijit De Bhowmik by more than 23,000 votes.
A senior BJP leader said, “Our party is giving utmost importance to North Bengal and this is a signal of that. I think the people of North Bengal will be happy with this decision.”
North Bengal is an electorally crucial region for the BJP – most of its seats had come from this region in 2021, when it had first emerged as the state’s principal Opposition. The party swept the region in the 2026 polls.
In her reaction to Bose’s election to the Speaker’s post, his mother Chhaya Debi, 84, said, “I never thought I would see such a day in my life. I am so proud.”
She said Bose began his schooling at a local primary school and then studied at the Rambhola High School in Cooch Behar. He later went to Kolkata to study chartered accountancy. After returning to Cooch Behar, he launched his own firm in Siliguri.
Before Bose, all Bengal Speakers had either been advocates or involved in legal professions. He has also become the first chartered accountant to hold the post.
“It’s a very proud moment for North Bengal. I will conduct the Assembly as per the Constitution and with the help of senior members of the Assembly,” Bose said.
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