The last Marxist Chief Minister of Bengal and arguably the ‘last surviving icon of pride’ for the State’s decaying Left force Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee passed away on Thursday morning after a prolonged illness. He was 80 and is survived by his wife Meera Bhattacharjee and son Suchetan. He was the State’s Chief Minister from 2000 to 2011. Bhattacharjee had been in poor health for several years, and was confined to his small two-room apartment on Palm Avenue for the past 8 years mostly reading and writing books.
Suffering from coronary obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD) his health deteriorated in recent times.
Much like his predecessor and senior party comrade Jyoti Basu, the mortal remains of Bhattacharjee too would be donated to Kolkata’s NRS Medical College for research work as per his last wishes, CPI(M) central committee member Rabin Deb said adding his eyes too were donated on Thursday.
His body would be taken to State Assembly on Friday and from there to the CPI(M) headquarters for his admirers to express their respect and after that his remains will be handed over to the hospital authorities, CPI(M) State secretary Md Salim said.
Besides being a politician Bhattacharjee was also a creative personality. Apart from being a poet, writer and a dramatist Bhattacharjee remained committed to his political ideology. True to his political commitment he made headlines when he refused the Padma Bhushan award announced by the NDA government in 2022.
Often considered by his staunchest opponents a “thorough gentleman and a hard honest politician” Bhattacharjee’s death was received with shock and dismay by the political fraternity even as his onetime bête noire and present Chief Minister Mamata Banejree wrote, “saddened by the passing of shri Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.
“He was a political stalwart who served the state with commitment. My heartfelt condolences to his family and supporters. Om Shanti … I have been knowing him for last several decades, and visited him a few times when he was ill and effectively confined to home in the last few years. My very sincere condolences” adding “the State government will provide him with full respect and ceremonial honor.”
Incidentally it was Banerjee who dislodged Bhattacharjee from power through prolonged land movement at Singur and Nandigram.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi too condoled his death writing “Saddened by the passing of Shri Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, former CM of West Bengal. He was a political stalwart who served the state with commitment. My heartfelt condolences to his family and supporters. Om Shanti.”
Expressing her condolences President Droupadi Murmu said, “The veteran leader personified dignity and was an epitome of principled politics. He will be long remembered for dedication to the welfare of the people of West Bengal. My heartfelt condolences to his family and followers.”
Congress president Mallkarjun Kharge wrote “my deepest condolences on the passing away of Former Chief Minister of West Bengal, Shri Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. He served the people in a political career spanning more than five decades. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and comrades.” Rahul Gandhi too condoled his death.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandra Babu Naidu too prayed for peace of his soul writing “admired for his simplicity and devotion to public service, which spanned over five decades, he played a pivotal role in shaping his state’s modern history. I extend my deepest condolences to his family and supporters.”
With the death of Bhattacharjee curtain tended to drop on an era of “integrity, uprightness and honest politics” the Kolkata intelligentsia said.
The nephew of renowned Bengali poet Sukanto Bhattacharjee often called Indian Shelly the departed leader started his political career as a student leader and joined the CPI(M) in 1964. Thereafter he won elections from Kashipur in North Kolkata and subsequently shifted base to Jadavpur Assembly seat which he continued to represent until he lost in 2011.
Before becoming the Chief Minister Bhattacharjee handled Information and Culture and Home portfolios. He was also the Deputy Chief Minister for sometime before succeeding Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu in 2000.
It was during his regime that Bengal started witnessing a steady flow of investments with much talked-about Tata Nano car project coming to Singur. The project however bombed in the wake of a movement started by Mamata Banerjee who protested alleged forcible acquisition of 997 acres of land in 2006.
During this time even as big names like Jindals, Vishakha, Videocon, etc started investing in Bengal which suddenly competed with Maharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka for its place as one of the favoured destinations of the industrialists Nandigram emerged as yet another flashpoint with the locals once again powered by the Trinamool Congress and a detachment of alleged Maoist elements building up a violent movement that led to police firing and 14 deaths.
Within a span of five years or so the mighty Left Front crumbled under the pressure of the two movements at Singur and Nandigram and the name of Bhattacharjee getting recorded in the annals of history as one of the tragic fallen heroes.
This even as the Tatas withdrew from Bengal and the fully constructed automobile unit standing by the National Highway 5 pulled down and getting blasted off by the State Government following a Supreme Court order.
