Assam Assembly’s seniormost MLA Patowary takes oath as pro-tem Speaker

Seniormost MLA of the 16th Assam Assembly, Chandra Mohan Patowary, was on Friday (May 15, 2026) sworn in as the pro-tem Speaker by Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya.

Mr. Acharya administered the oath to the BJP leader and former cabinet minister at a ceremony held at Lok Bhavan here.

"Today, at Lok Bhavan, Assam, I administered the oath of office as the Pro-tem Speaker of the newly constituted 16th Assam Legislative Assembly to Shri Chandra Mohan Patowary," the Governor said in a post on X.

"I am confident that drawing upon his vast experience and commitment to democratic values, the initial proceedings of the Assembly will be conducted with complete constitutional dignity," Mr. Acharya added.

"Honoured to have taken oath as Pro-tem Speaker of 16th @AssamAssembly, administered by Hon’ble Governor of Assam Shri @Laxmanacharya54 Ji at Lok Bhavan today," the seventh-time MLA said in a post on the social media site.

Mr. Patowary was first elected to the Assembly from Dharmapur constituency in 1985 as an Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) candidate. He represented the constituency six times, including twice as a BJP legislator since 2016.

He has been elected to the new Assembly from Tihu constituency, created during the 2023 delimitation exercise, which includes parts of the erstwhile Dharmapur seat.

As pro-tem Speaker, Mr. Patowary will administer the oath to newly elected MLAs during the first session of the Assembly beginning on May 21.

The four-day session will continue till May 26, with the legislators to be sworn-in on the first day, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said earlier.

The former Cabinet Minister will be responsible for the conduct of business till the election of the new Speaker.

The NDA had announced senior BJP legislator and ex-minister Ranjeet Kumar Dass as its candidate for the Speaker’s post, a position held by him initially when the first saffron party-led government had come to power in the State in 2016.

The NDA retained power for a third consecutive term with a two-thirds majority in the recently concluded Assembly polls. The BJP won 82 seats, while its allies AGP and Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) secured 10 seats each in the 126-member House.