Kolkata, 8 August (Udaipur Kiran): Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, the second and last Chief Minister of the 34-year-long Left Front rule in West Bengal and a veteran Left leader, has passed away. He was 80 years old. His son Suchetan Bhattacharya confirmed the news on Thursday morning.
Bhattacharya served as the Chief Minister of West Bengal for 11 consecutive years from 2000 to 2011. His son Suchetan said on Thursday morning that Buddhadeb had breakfast but suddenly fell ill and passed away at his home on Palm Avenue at 8:20 am. Suchetan reached there as soon as he got the news.
According to sources, Buddhadeb’s breathing problem had become serious on Wednesday night, but the situation was controlled at night. Doctors from Woodlands were scheduled to examine him at 11 am on Thursday. A decision had been taken to admit him to the hospital if necessary as he was reluctant to go to the hospital. Meanwhile, his condition deteriorated again on Thursday morning. After breakfast, he again had difficulty breathing and an attempt was made to give him a nebulizer, but at the same time he suffered a heart attack. Doctors were immediately called and they declared Buddhadeb dead.
The CPM state leadership will discuss regarding paying tributes to Buddhadeb. Since Buddhadeb was a member of the Politburo of the CPI(M), leaders from Delhi will also play a role in his last journey. His body has been kept in a two-room flat on Palm Avenue.
Last year on August 9, Buddhadeb had returned home from the hospital. On July 29, he was admitted to a private hospital in Alipore, South Kolkata, in a critical condition. He was kept on ventilator support for a few days. He had pneumonia and was found to have a severe infection in his lungs and trachea. For the first few days in the hospital, he was unconscious, but gradually the treatment started showing good results on him. He was discharged after 12 days and even after returning home, he was kept under close watch.
Buddhadeb had been suffering from a severe respiratory problem (COPD) for a long time. Due to the disease, he had been staying almost at home for the past few years. He had been hospitalized several times before. In December 2020, he was hospitalized due to a serious respiratory problem. Even then, he had to be kept on ventilator for a few days. After returning safely from there, he returned home.
In May 2021, he was infected with COVID-19. His condition deteriorated and he was admitted to the hospital on 18 May. At the same time, his wife Mira Bhattacharya was also infected with COVID and was admitted to the same hospital. Both returned home after becoming COVID negative in a few days.
Rejected the Padma Bhushan Award given by the Central Government
On January 25, 2022, Buddhadeb made headlines by rejecting the Padma Bhushan award. The central government had nominated him, but he refused to accept this honor.
Buddhadeb’s 11-year rule was full of controversies from various perspectives in the politics of Bengal. There was a lot of political stir over his industrialization policy. The process of land acquisition for industrialization had brought people to the streets in many areas of rural Bengal, which led to the Left Front losing power. The Chief Minister, who had returned to power in 2006 by winning 235 seats, had to face a crushing defeat five years later in 2011, and the 34-year-long Left rule in West Bengal ended. Mamata Banerjee became the Chief Minister.