The Calcutta High Court has declined to pass any interim order in the case concerning the appointment of the Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, holding that intervention at this stage would not be appropriate. As a result, the decision taken by the Speaker will continue to remain in force for the time being.
The dispute over the appointment of the Leader of Opposition has reached the court amid differences within the Trinamool Congress (TMC), where the appointment of Ritabrata Banerjee to the post has been challenged.
During the hearing on Thursday, June 18, 2026, a bench of Justice Krishna Rao stated that it would not issue any interim order at this stage. The court directed all parties to file their replies and objections in the form of affidavits within two weeks. The next hearing has been scheduled for July 28. Following the court’s decision, the Speaker’s appointment order remains effective.
The controversy began after two different names emerged within the TMC for the post of Leader of Opposition. One faction of the party leadership proposed the name of Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, while a group of alleged rebel legislators supported Ritabrata Banerjee. Subsequently, Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee accepted Ritabrata Banerjee’s nomination and appointed him as Leader of Opposition. The decision led to dissent within the party and the matter was subsequently taken to court.
During the proceedings, the court raised several constitutional and procedural questions, including what course of action a Speaker should adopt if two separate names are submitted by the same political party, whether all parties must be given an opportunity to be heard before a decision is taken, and whether the Speaker can act on his own initiative in such circumstances.
Counsel appearing for the Speaker argued that, under Assembly rules, the Leader of Opposition is the representative of the largest opposition party in the House. It was also submitted that the Speaker’s decision in internal disputes is considered final.
The dispute took a further turn after allegations of forged signatures surfaced on documents reportedly linked to the nomination process for the Leader of Opposition. According to sources, Ritabrata Banerjee and another legislator, Sandipan Saha, were the first to question the authenticity of the signatures. The matter was subsequently referred to the Assembly Secretariat, following which an FIR was registered.
The West Bengal Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has since initiated a formal investigation. As part of the probe, statements of the concerned legislators are being recorded and signature samples are being collected.
