Former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee passed away in Kolkata, on Monday, days after he was admitted to hospital with a kidney ailment. He was 89.
Chatterjee, was admitted to Belle Vue hospital on August 8, and was on ventilator support. He had suffered a heart attack. His condition turned critical on Sunday morning.
The 10-time parliamentarian had been in and out of hospital for the last two months. Doctors said he was undergoing dialysis.
Former MP and Speaker Shri Somnath Chatterjee was a stalwart of Indian politics. He made our Parliamentary democracy richer and was a strong voice for the well-being of the poor and vulnerable. Anguished by his demise. My thoughts are with his family and supporters.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 13, 2018
Tributes are pouring in for the leftist leader who was known for conducting the affairs of the Lower House with a firm but a fair hand.
I am deeply shocked to hear the sad demise of Sh #SomnathChatterjee , senior parliamentarian & 10 time #LokSabha MP.
His role as Lok Sabha #Speaker fm 2004 to 2009 was highly appreciated for upholding ideals of #Parliamentary #Democracy.
My condolences to his family & friends pic.twitter.com/lh6QT1shpv
— Ananthkumar (@AnanthKumar_BJP) August 13, 2018
Last month, the former Speaker had suffered a hemorrhagic stroke. After his condition improved, he was discharged from the hospital. But three days later, on Tuesday, he had to be hospitalised again.
“In such cases it happens at times that the heart stops giving support. Chatterjee suffered a mild heart attack this morning, but was revived. He is in the ICU and is responding to treatment,” news agency Press Trust of India quoted a doctor as saying.
Chatterjee joined the CPM in 1968 and became the Speaker of the Lower House in 2004 when the UPA government led by Manmohan Singh came to power.
I mourn the passing away of Shri Somnath Chatterjee, 10 term MP and former Speaker of the Lok Sabha. He was an institution. Greatly respected and admired by all parliamentarians, across party lines. My condolences to his family at this time of grief. #SomnathChatterjee
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 13, 2018
The veteran leader was, however, expelled from the CPM in 2008 after the Left Front, one of the biggest allies of the UPA, withdrew support from the government over the India-US nuclear deal. The party wanted Chatterjee to step down as the Speaker and vote against the government during the trust vote.
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