WB Governor Dhankar mourns Subrata Mukherjee's demise; 'We have lost a stalwart'

As Trinamool Congress veteran Subrata Mukherjee breathed his last on Thursday following a massive cardiac arrest, West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar offered his condolences. Originally scheduled to be discharged from the SSKM hospital on Friday, the TMC leader was shifted to the ICU ward last week after he complained of severe breathing problems. 

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee had also rushed to the hospital after the news of Subrata Mukherjee's demise started gaining traction, and claimed that it was a personal loss for her. She added that his mortal remains would be kept at Rabindra Sadan so that people can pay their last respects.

Leaders across the political spectrum including WB Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and WB Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury mourned his loss.

WB Governor on Mukherjee's demise: 'We have lost a stalwart'

While at the Vidhan Sabha, where late Subrata Mukherjee's body had been brought over, WB Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar paid floral tributes to the veteran. While going on to laud Mukherjee's illustrious political career which spanned over five decades, Governor Dhankhar stated that an era had come to an end.

In an interaction with news agency ANI, Dhankhar said, "He tried to change the landscape of Kolkata; wherever he went he only made friends. I pray to the Almighty to bestow eternal peace to the departed soul."

Subrata Mukherjee: Political career overview

Born on June 14, 1946, in the South 24 Parganas district, Subrata Mukherjee was the eldest of 5 siblings. He was a graduate of anthropology and a post-graduate in archaeology. He commenced his political journey as a student leader of the Bangabasi College in 1967 and was first elected to the WB Assembly in 1971 from Ballygunge on a Congress ticket.

In 1972, he was appointed as a Minister of State in the Siddhartha Shankar Ray-led government at the age of 26. While he lost his seat in 1977, he won from Jorabagan constituency in the 1982 Assembly polls and retained that seat until 1996.

His career took a decisive turn after he parted ways with Congress and joined TMC in 1999. While he served as the MLA of Chowranghee during 1996-2006, he also had a fruitful tenure as the Mayor of Kolkata from 2000 to 2005. He jumped ship to NCP in 2005 before eventually joining Congress once again.

However, Mukherjee came a distant third in the Chowranghee constituency in the 2006 Assembly elections. In 2010, he rejoined TMC and became an MLA a year later after contesting from Ballygunge - a seat which he retained until his death.

Image Credit - ANI/PTI