Senior Advocate Surojit Nath Mitra has been named the new Advocate General of West Bengal, taking over from Kishore Datta who resigned on May 5, a day after the West Bengal Assembly election results were declared. With over four decades of legal practice specializing in civil and commercial law since 1983, Mitra’s appointment was announced by the judicial department of West Bengal.
The notification issued by the Principal Secretary to the state judicial department stated, “In exercise of power conferred by Clause (1) of Article 165 of the Constitution of India, the Governor is hereby pleased to appoint Shri Surojit Nath Mitra, Senior Advocate, High Court, Calcutta, to be the Advocate General for the State of West Bengal on usual terms and conditions, until further orders, with effect from the afternoon of 29th May.”
During the previous Trinamool Congress regime, Kishore Datta, the predecessor of Mitra, served as the Advocate General for a significant period. He held the position twice in the last 15 years of the Trinamool Congress rule since 2011. Datta’s resignation coincided with advocates from the BJP’s legal cell approaching the Calcutta High Court’s Chief Justice Sujoy Paul to halt verdicts and orders in state-related cases until the new state cabinet was formed.
