Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday announced the live streaming of Assembly sessions to let the people of the state know about the performance of members on the floor of the House, similar to Parliament and Houses in other states.

The chief minister said the BJP dispensation wanted to move the Assembly forward while upholding the constitutional principles of “for the people, by the people, and of the people”.

“We will ensure live streaming of debates on the floor of the Assembly. The facility will be available during Question Hour, the passing of bills, budgets, departmental budget discussions, private members’ bills, calling attention motions, Zero Hour, mentions, and all proceedings. The public also has the right to know the functioning of the Opposition,” Suvendu said on the floor of the Assembly after Rathindra Bose was elected uncontested as the Speaker.

The Assembly witnessed a cordial atmosphere when the new Speaker was escorted to his chair jointly by the chief minister and the leader of the Opposition, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay. Bose said he would provide space to Opposition parties to speak on the floor, as the BJP believed in democratic procedure.

During his tenure as the leader of the Opposition, Suvendu had repeatedly pointed out the “undemocratic” move by the Mamata Banerjee government in allowing live streaming only on selective days, particularly when the then chief minister spoke on the floor. Speeches by Opposition MLAs were never allowed to be live-streamed.

“In other states, people can directly see the performance of the Assembly and their elected representatives. But in our Assembly, voters remain completely in the dark about whether MLAs are attending the House, whether they are fulfilling the responsibilities for which the people elected them, and how accountable they are,” the chief minister said on Friday.

During the Trinamool regime, especially in its last term from 2021 to 2026, BJP legislators repeatedly alleged that they were not allotted adequate time compared to ministers or MLAs of the then ruling party.

Suvendu has assured that he will implement a 50-50 model for sharing time during debates and discussions on the floor of the Assembly.

“I want to assure the Opposition that, according to constitutional principles and parliamentary democratic tradition, the House belongs to the Opposition. The Speaker will take the final decision. But regarding participation in discussions and allocation of time, I want to make the government and ruling party’s position clear: we will not move away from the 50-50 sharing principle. Even though we have a much larger number (of MLAs), arrangements will be made so that the Speaker gives you ample opportunity to speak,” said the chief minister.

BJP MLAs recalled how their voices were suppressed during the Trinamool regime and the time when Suvendu and BJP legislators were allegedly manhandled.

Chandana Bauri, the two-time BJP MLA from Bankura’s Saltora, told the new Speaker how they had not been allowed to speak on the floor of the House.

Suvendu called for a constructive Opposition inside the Assembly, saying: “We do not want an Assembly where the leader of the Opposition is kept out of the House for 11 months. We do not want any MLA to be physically assaulted and forced to go to a hospital or doctor. This is not a place for fighting. We want accountability and decency in language,” said the Bhabanipur MLA.

As chief minister, he said he would meet MLAs regardless of their party, unless their political party objected. He also said he would instruct ministers to grant appointments to Opposition MLAs if they sought them.

“Whenever ministers visit constituencies, they should inform the local MLA, irrespective of party affiliation. If you (Opposition MLAs) write to me, you will receive an acknowledgement and also some positive results,” Suvendu told the legislators.

Assembly building

Suvendu hinted that Bengal may get a new modern Assembly building, referring to a possible increase in the number of MLAs following delimitation.

“After delimitation and related changes, the number of Assembly seats may also increase in the future. Therefore, under the Speaker’s leadership and with the cooperation of the state government, we will work towards plans for a new Assembly building in the days ahead,” he said.

The chief minister also spoke in favour of the introduction of an electronic voting system, instead of the traditional paper-based voting method, in the House.

Nandi resignation

The chief minister on Friday submitted his resignation as the Nandigram MLA. He has retained the Bhabanipur Assembly constituency, where he defeated Mamata Banerjee once again. Suvendu submitted his resignation letter to Speaker Bose.

However, Suvendu said that he would continue to stand by the people of Nandigram and visit the constituency on important occasions.

Bengali priority

The Assembly will give special priority to the Bengali language in conducting most proceedings. The decision is significant because Trinamool had repeatedly alleged that the BJP was anti-Bengali.

Budget session

The Budget session of the 18th Assembly will start on June 18 with the governor's address. The Speaker announced that there would be an all-party meeting before the session begins.

Ahead of the Assembly elections, the Mamata government had tabled the interim budget in February.