Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya (Bengali: বিকাশ রঞ্জন ভট্টাচার্য; born 27 November 1951) is an Indian politician and lawyer. He is currently serving as a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from the Communist Party of India (Marxist).[1] He is serving as the CPI(M) parliamentary party leader in Rajya Sabha since 3 July 2024. He served as Mayor of Kolkata from 2005 to 2010, heading the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, led by the Left Front (West Bengal) in the state of West Bengal.[2]
Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha | |
| Assumed office 22 July 2020 | |
| President | |
| Chairman of the House | |
| Preceded by | Ritabrata Banerjee |
| Constituency | West Bengal |
| 36th Mayor of Kolkata | |
| In office 5 July 2005 – 16 June 2010 | |
| Deputy | Kalyan Mukherjee |
| Preceded by | Subrata Mukherjee |
| Succeeded by | Sovan Chatterjee |
| Constituency | Ward No. 100 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 27 November 1951 Kolkata, West Bengal |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Political party | Communist Party of India (Marxist) |
| Alma mater | Asutosh College (B.Sc.) University of Calcutta (LL.B) |
| Profession | Politician Lawyer |
Early life
editBhattacharya hails from the Kalighat region of Kolkata.[3] He was born in a refugee family to Nityaranjan Bhattacharyya and Avarani Bhattacharyya. He went to Kalighat High School, and then joined Ashutosh College for his Bachelor of Science degree. He completed his LL.B. from University of Calcutta. He was later recruited as a school teacher, however, he left that job to join the legal profession.[4]
Legal career
editBhattacharya is a Senior Advocate and leads various notable cases like "Saradha", "Narada sting operation", "Teachers Recruitment Scam" among other cases. He is practicing in Supreme Court of India, Calcutta High Court and other courts.
He has served as the Advocate General of Tripura for 5 years between 1998-2003.[5] He was once offered the position of a justice at Calcutta High Court but he passed on that appointment.
He also acts as the principal legal mind of his party and defends party members implicated in political cases
Political career
editHe joined the Communist Party of India (Marxist) as a student and was active Students' Federation of India.
He was arrested in the 1970's for participating in students' movement and spent some time in prison.[4]
He took over the reins of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation in 2005 and continued as Mayor of Kolkata in 2010. He was elected from Ward No. 100, Kolkata Municipal Corporation in 2005, defeating influential Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee.[6]
As Mayor of Kolkata, he undertook several projects including sewerage systems in the city and took initiative to provide birth certificates to street children. Being a senior advocate he has become the poster-boy of TMC government opposition by his cascading eloquence and fiery oratory.
He fought from the Jadavpur Lok Sabha constituency in 2019 Indian general election in West Bengal for CPI(M) in which he faced defeat and received third position behind Mimi Chakraborty of Trinamool Congress party and Anupam Hazra of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was the only of candidate of his party in West Bengal to retain his security deposit.[7]
He has been elected to Rajya Sabha from West Bengal in 2020 and took oath on 22 July. Earlier in 2017, he contested for a Rajya Sabha seat in West Bengal, however, his nomination was disqualified due to technical issues.[8]
He was elected as the President of All India Lawyers' Union, lawyers' organisation of Communist Party of India (Marxist) in 2017. He currently serves as a special invited member of CPI(M) West Bengal State Committee.
He is the CPI(M) parliamentary party leader in Rajya Sabha.[9]
Personal life
editBhattacharyya married to Ibha Bhattacharyya on 31 May 1976 and the couple has a son. Ibha Bhattacharyya is a consultant dietician. He has five brothers and one sister.[10][4]
References
edit- ^ Das, Madhuparna (20 March 2020). "The CPI(M) leader who tripped party boss Sitaram Yechury to enter Rajya Sabha". The Print. Archived from the original on 26 April 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Ex-mayor and noted lawyer Bikash Bhattacharya to contest Bengal RS seat as Left-Congress candidate". 10 March 2020. Archived from the original on 14 September 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ Konar, Debasish (5 February 2006). "The Chosen One Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya". The Times of India. Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd. Archived from the original on 15 February 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2008.
- ^ a b c "The Chosen One Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya". The Times of India. 5 February 2006. Archived from the original on 15 February 2019. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
- ^ Centre, National Informatics. "Digital Sansad". Digital Sansad. Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
- ^ "Election results" (PDF). wbsec.gov.in. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
- ^ "All But One Left Front Candidates Set To Lose Their Security Deposit In West Bengal". Business Standard. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "টানাপড়েনে ঝুলেই রইলেন বিকাশ". Archived from the original on 18 March 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
- ^ ഡെസ്ക്, വെബ്. "ബികാഷ് രഞ്ജന് ഭട്ടാചാര്യ രാജ്യസഭയിലെ സി പി എം കക്ഷി നേതാവ്". Siraj Daily (in Malayalam). Retrieved 3 July 2024.
- ^ "Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya(Communist Party of India (Marxist)(CPI(M))):(WEST BENGAL) - Affidavit Information of Candidate". Archived from the original on 18 March 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2023.