Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee(1 March 1944 – 8 August 2024) was an Indiancommunistpolitician and a member of thePolitburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist),who served as the 7thChief Minister of West Bengalfrom 2000 to 2011. In a political career over five decades, he became one of the senior leaders ofCommunist Party of India (Marxist)during his regime.
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| বুদ্ধদেব ভট্টাচার্য | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Bhattacharjee in 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7thChief Minister of West Bengal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 6 November 2000 – 13 May 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Jyoti Basu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Mamata Banerjee | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3rdDeputy Chief Minister of West Bengal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 12 January 1999 – 5 November 2000 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chief Minister | Jyoti Basu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Bijoy Singh Nahar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Vacant | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Member of Polit Bureau,Communist Party of India (Marxist) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 2002 – 2015 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 1 March 1944 Calcutta,Bengal Province,British India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 8 August 2024(aged 80) Kolkata,West Bengal,India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party |  Communist Party of India (Marxist) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse | Meera Bhattacharjee | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relations | Sukanta Bhattacharya(uncle) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | Suchetan (Born: Suchetana) Bhattacharjee | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Residence(s) | Palm Avenue, Kolkata, India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Presidency College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bhattacharjee was known for his relatively open policies regarding business, in contrast with the previous financial policies of theCPI(M),which were primarilyanti-capitalist.However, he faced strong land acquisition protests and allegations about violence against the protesters. This led Bhattacharjee to lose the2011 elections,resulting in the fall ofLeft Front's 34 years of rule inWest Bengal,the world's longest-lasting democratically electedCommunistgovernment.
Early life
editBhattacharjee was born on 1 March 1944 in North Kolkata to aBengali Brahminfamily. His grandfather, Krishnachandra Smrititirtha was a Sanskrit scholar who had composed a priestly manual namedPurohit Darpan,which remains popular withBengali Hindupriests in West Bengal. Buddhadeb's father, Nepalchandra, did not enter into the priesthood and was involved with the family publication, Saraswat Library, devoted to selling Hindu religious material.[2]PoetSukanta Bhattacharyawas Nepalchandra's cousin. A former student ofSailendra Sircar Vidyalaya,Buddhadeb studied Bengali literature at thePresidency College,Kolkata, and secured his B.A. degree in Bengali (Honours). He then joined Adarsh Shankha Vidya Mandir school atDum Dumas a teacher.[3][4][5]
Political career
editInitial career (1966–1971)
editBhattacharjee joined the CPI(M) as a primary member in 1966. Besides taking active part in the food movement, he also supportedVietnam's causein 1968. In 1968, he was elected as the state secretary of the Democratic Youth Federation, the youth wing of the CPI(M), that was later merged into theDemocratic Youth Federation of India.He served in the position till 1981, when he was succeeded by Boren Basu. He was mentored byPromode Dasgupta.[3][4]
Recognition, election as MLA and ministership (1972–2000)
editBhattacharjee was elected to the state committee of CPI(M) in 1972 and was inducted in the state secretariat in 1982.[3][4]
From 1977 to 1982, he was elected as theMLAofKashipur-Belgachia.Bhattacharjee served as the Minister of Information and Public Relations in the West Bengal Cabinet between 1977 and 1982.[4]
In 1982, he lost the assembly elections from Cossipur constituency in 1982 by a slender margin. He was made a permanent invitee to the central committee of CPI(M) in 1984 and was made a member in 1985.[3]
Later, in 1987, he became the MLA ofJadavpurand continued to represent the constituency till 2011. He was re-inducted in the cabinet in 1987 as the Minister of Information and Cultural Affairs. He also held departments of Urban Development and Municipal Affairs.[3][4]
He was included in the cabinet in 1991 as a minister, with the portfolios of Information and Cultural Affairs and Urban Development and Municipal Affairs. However, he abruptly resigned from his position in September 1993, following differences with thenChief Minister of West Bengal,Jyoti Basu,regarding the functioning of the administration and the alleged issue of corruption.[6]Notably, he remarked that Basu's cabinet was a "council of thieves".[7]He returned to the cabinet a few months later.[citation needed]
Following the1996 West Bengal election,Bhattacharjee was handed the responsibility of the home and police department, owing to the declining health of the elderly Chief Minister Basu. In 1999, he was made the Deputy Chief minister of West Bengal.
Chief Minister of West Bengal (2001–2011)
edit
On 6 November 2000, he was elevated to the position of Chief Minister after Basu's resignation. In 2002, he was elected to the politburo of CPI(M).[8]
Bhattacharjee was elected Chief Minister of West Bengal and was sworn in in a solemn ceremony at Raj Bhawan.[9]As Chief Minister, he led the CPI(M)-ledLeft Frontto two successive election victories in 2001 and 2006. In 2001, the Left Front secured 199 out of 294 assembly seats and in 2006, it improved the tally to 235 out of 294 seats.[10][11]
Bhattacharjee's tenure saw major incidents of violence perpetrated by the cadres of the ruling CPI(M) like theChhoto Angaria massacre,theNetaikillings and theDhantalacase. There was also an escalation ofMaoist attacksin the state, the most notable being theattack on a police camp at Silda,violence in Lalgarhand theJnaneswari Express train derailment.[citation needed]Bhattacharya himself survived an assassination attempt by Maoists in 2008.[12]
Bhattacharjee started an industrialization drive in West Bengal to bring in more investment and jobs in the states. Under his government, West Bengal saw investments in the IT and services sector.[13]
Notable among the invited projects was that of the production of the world's cheapest car, theTata Nano,[14]inSingur,a small town near Kolkata. Other notable proposals included the country's largest integrated steel plant inSalboniby the Jindal group. Another notable proposed project was achemical hubatNayachar,after it had faced resistance from farmers inNandigram.[citation needed]
However, his plans were perceived negatively, and his party, along with its front partners, suffered heavy losses in the2009 Indian general election.In the2011 state assembly election,he was defeated atJadavpurby the formerChief Secretaryof his own government, and theTrinamool congresscandidate Manish Gupta by 16,684 votes.[15]He became the secondWest Bengal Chief Ministerto lose an election from his own constituency, afterPrafulla Chandra Senin 1967.[16]The Left Front saw a drubbing, securing just 62 seats out of 294. He resigned as Chief Minister on 13 May 2011.[citation needed]
Singur Tata Nano controversy and Nandigram violence
editEvents during his tenure as Chief Minister included attempts to industrialize West Bengal thwarted by theTATA'sTata MotorsleavingBengalin the face of the joint protests of theTrinamool Congress,[17]Socialist Unity Centre of India,andIndian National Congress,[18]theland acquisition disputeinSingur,theNandigram incident,[19]and the Netai incident.[20]
In January 2006 theSupreme Court of Indiaissued notices to Left Front Government ministers including Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and others in relation to land allotments made in theSalt Lake Citytownship inKolkata.[21]
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's Government came under heavy criticism forpolice action against demonstrators in Nandigram in East Midnapore.He was criticized not only by opposition parties (such as theTrinamool Congress,INC,PDS,BJP,CPI(ML)L,CRLIand others) and other Left Front coalition allies likeCPI,RSPandAIFB,who threatened to back out from the ministry on this issue, but also by his mentor and the state's former chief minister,Jyoti Basu
On 15 March 2007, Basu criticized Bhattacharjee for failing to restrain the police in Nandigram.[22]Bhattacharjee expressed regret for the shootings, but claimed that he permitted police action because Nandigram was an "area where there had been no rule of law and no presence of an administration for not one, two or 10 days but for two-and-a-half months, and many hundreds of villagers left Nandigram, and took shelter in a state relief camp outside Nandigram."[23]Actually Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee declared that land in Nandigram wouldn't be acquired by ordering the Nandigram notification to be torn apart.[24][25]Still police were not allowed to enter Nandigram. Roads were dug up, preventing administration from entering the area.[24]
The CPI(M) declared that they were totally behind Bhattacharjee and had drawn up "plans" to placate his critics in the Left Front.[26]His government was also criticized by Left supporters for failing to protect the Left party workers (including his own party CPI(M)) who came under assault from political opponents - both right wing and ultra-left wing Maoists during the post-Nandigram turmoil until the end of 7th Left Front Government.[citation needed]
Electoral history
editBhattacharjee was elected asMember of Legislative AssemblyfromCossipur (Vidhan Sabha constituency)once and fromJadavpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency)for five consecutive terms.
Later life
editDespite his calls to be relieved of party responsibilities, Bhattacharjee was retained as a member of the Politburo and the Central Committee in the 20th party congress, organised at Kozhikode in 2012.[27]
He was relieved of his posts on thePolit Bureauand Central Committee at the 21st party congress, organised at Vishakhapatnam in 2015.[28]The party congress elected him as a special invitee to the Central Committee. However, he was persuaded to remain a member of the state committee and the state secretariat till 2018. In 2018, due to continuing ill-health he stepped down from the state committee and the state secretariat.[29]He was later named as a special invitee to the state committee. In 2019, he made an attempt to attend a mega-rally at Brigade Parade ground in Kolkata, however, due to breathing difficulties he could not appear on the stage and remained seated in his car.[30]
Padma Bhushan rejection
editIn January 2022, theGovernment of Indiaawarded Bhattacharjee with thePadma Bhushan,the third-highest civilian award in India. However, he declined the award and claimed that he had not been informed about the award. He said a call was made to his residence earlier in the day, while adding there is no provision of taking consent for giving Padma awards.[31][32][33][34][35]
Personal life
editBhattacharjee was married to Meera Bhattacharjee. Together, they had a child who underwentgender surgeryand is now known as Suchetan Bhattacharjee.[36]Bhattacharjee was renowned for his frugal lifestyle. The family lived in a two-room apartment inBallygunge,Kolkata. Bhattacharjee operated as Chief Minister from the same residence.[37]Although belonging to a family of priests, Bhattacharjee was an avowed atheist, in accordance with the principles of communism.[2]
Bhattacharjee died fromchronic obstructive pulmonary diseasein Kolkata, on 8 August 2024, at the age of 80.[38][39]
Works
edit- Biponno jaahaajer ek nabiker golpo(1994): Translation ofThe Story of a Shipwrecked SailorbyGabriel García Márquez
- Duhsomoy(transl. The Bad Times) (1993): Buddhadeb Bhattacharya's play deals with the communal tension between Hindus and Muslims in the aftermath of thedemolition of the Babri Masjid.
- Ei aami mayakabhski(1994): Translated works of Russian-Soviet poetVladimir Mayakovsky
- Chilite gopone(1996): Translation ofClandestine in Chileby Gabriel García Márquez
- Phire dekha (prothom porbo)(transl. Looking back (first part)) (2015): Not an out and out reminiscence, this book is e flashback„ with some well-constructed montages of a momentous past. It propels the readers to early five years of the Left Front Government in West Bengal(1977-1982)
- Phire dekha (dwitiyo porbo)(transl. Looking back (second part)) (2017): This is a frank and concise account of the last decade (2001-2011) of the Left Front Government in West Bengal, India, by the communist leader who headed it.The author does not avoid controversial issues like the movement at Singur and Nandigram against his government while focusing on developmental goals and achievements of which he and the Left can be justly proud.
- Nazi Germanyr jonmo o mrityu(transl. The Rise and Fall of Nazi Germany) (2018): The book consists of 14 chapters excluding the preface and appendix. So that – fromAdolf Hitler's rise to powerto the last days ofAdolf Hitler.From the Prime Minister to the Fuehrer, Russia's struggle for self-defense, the fall of Germany and Italy, theconcentration camps,etc., are told.
- Swarger niche mohabishrankhola(transl. Chaos under heaven) (2019): In this 72-page book, the former chief minister of the state has highlighted the evolution of China - from constructing theGreat Wall of Chinato prevent the Mongolian invasions to the world power of the Chinese information technology companyAlibaba Groupin the era of globalization.
References
edit- ^Jadavpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency)(Wikipedia)
- ^ab"A ritual bond with Buddha".www.telegraphindia.com.11 May 2011.
- ^abcdeChoudhary, Ratnadeep (1 March 2019)."Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, the last Left chief minister of West Bengal".ThePrint.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^abcde"Buddhadeb Bhattacharya".Communist Party of India (Marxist).22 August 2011.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"rediff.com Profile/Buddhadeb Bhattacharya".m.rediff.com.Retrieved8 August2024.
- ^"Buddhadev Bhattacharya makes abrupt exit from Left Front government".India Today.30 September 1993.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"The Loneliness of Buddhadeb".17 September 2009.
- ^"END OF AN ERA".Frontline.10 November 2000.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"Buddhadeb sworn in Bengal CM".The Tribune.
- ^Ghosh, Arunabha (2001)."West Bengal Assembly Elections, 2001: An Overview".The Indian Journal of Political Science.62(2):179–187.ISSN0019-5510.JSTOR42753666.
- ^"West Bengal voters reward CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharya for pursuing investment, goodwill".India Today.22 May 2006.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"Buddha, Paswan escape landmine blast".NDTV.2 November 2008.
- ^Thakur, Pradeep (24 May 2011)."Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee steered West Bengal to 4th position in industrial growth".The Economic Times.ISSN0013-0389.Retrieved21 August2023.
- ^"The Sunday Times".Timesonline.co.uk. 13 March 2012. Archived fromthe originalon 30 August 2008.Retrieved11 July2012.
- ^"The man who beat Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee for the first time in 24 years".NDTV.com.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"Buddhadeb loses from Jadavpore"Archived4 December 2014 at theWayback Machine,Yahoo! News,13 May 2011.
- ^"WB polls: Buddha has himself to blame for Left-front's loss",India Today,14 May 2011.Archived17 May 2011 at theWayback Machine
- ^India, One (3 December 2006)."BJP President Rajnath to visit Singur tomorrow".Archivedfrom the original on 19 June 2021.Retrieved14 December2020.
- ^"Exit Buddhadeb, man who saw beyond ideological convictions",The Economic Times,14 May 2011.Archived19 October 2012 at theWayback Machine
- ^"CPM pays for Netai, suffers losses in Junglemahal"Archived29 July 2023 at theWayback Machine,Indian Express,14 May 2011.
- ^"Court notice to Jyoti Basu",The Hindu,24 January 2006.
- ^Subir Bhaumik,"India strike over police shooting"Archived19 March 2007 at theWayback Machine,BBC News, 16 March 2007.
- ^"Deaths in violence unfortunate, says Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee",The Hindu,16 March 2007.
- ^ab"National: Deaths in violence unfortunate, says Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee".The Hindu.16 March 2007. Archived fromthe originalon 25 March 2007.Retrieved11 July2012.
- ^"Tear apart Nandigram notification: Buddhadeb".Rxpgnews.com.Archivedfrom the original on 21 July 2011.Retrieved11 July2012.
- ^Subrata Nagchoudhury,"Party stands by Buddha, gets restive allies to fall in line",indianexpress.com, 18 March 2007.Archived17 October 2007 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Buddhadeb skips CPI(M) party congress, gets elected to politburo".India Today.14 April 2012.Retrieved21 August2023.
- ^"Ex-West Bengal CM Buddhadeb Remains Critical".www.outlookindia.com.31 July 2023.
- ^"Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Steps Down From CPI(M) State Committee".NDTV.com.Retrieved21 August2023.
- ^"Buddhadeb to miss Brigade rally due to poor health".www.telegraphindia.com.Retrieved21 August2023.
- ^"Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee refuses Padma Bhushan award".The Hindu.ISSN0971-751X.Archivedfrom the original on 27 January 2022.Retrieved27 January2022.
- ^""No One Told Me": CPM's Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Rejects Padma Bhushan ".NDTV.com.Archivedfrom the original on 27 January 2022.Retrieved27 January2022.
- ^"Communist veteran Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee refuses Padma Bhushan".Hindustan Times.25 January 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 27 January 2022.Retrieved27 January2022.
- ^"Padma Awards: CPM's Veteran Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Rejects Padma Bhushan".ABP Live.25 January 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 27 January 2022.Retrieved27 January2022.
- ^"Why Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee refused the Padma Bhushan".India Today.27 January 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 27 January 2022.Retrieved27 January2022.
- ^"Buddhadeb Bhattacharya's daughter Suchetana may undergo sex-change operation: '…as a man'".Hindustan Times.21 June 2023.Retrieved21 August2023.
- ^"Buddhadeb's assets: No house, no car, only Rs 5,000 in bank".The Times of India.6 April 2011.ISSN0971-8257.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"Former Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee passes away".Retrieved8 August2024.
- ^"The Marxist journey of 'Brand Buddha' Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee".The Times of India.8 August 2024.ISSN0971-8257.Retrieved8 August2024.
External links
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