Former Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Dies

Kolkata: Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, the former Chief Minister of West Bengal, has died at the age of 80. He passed away at his residence in Kolkata's Ballygunge at around 8.20 am on Thursday morning, his family has confirmed. 

Mohammed Salim, the state secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), has also confirmed the news of his demise.

The veteran Left leader had been in poor health for some time, suffering from respiratory issues that resulted in frequent hospitalisations. Last year, he was also in life support after contracting pneumonia, fortunately, he had managed to recover then.

Bhattacharjee, who was also a former member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)'s top decision-making body, the Politburo, served as the Chief Minister of Bengal from 2000 to 2011, succeeding Jyoti Basu. He led the CPM in the 2011 state elections, but was unsuccessful, as the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress secured a historic victory, ending the 34-year Communist rule in the eastern state.

Bhattacharjee was known for his relatively open business policies, which contrasted with the primarily anti-capitalist financial stance of the CPI(M). However, during his tenure as Chief Minister, he faced significant protests over land acquisition and allegations of violence against protesters. These issues contributed to his defeat in the 2011 election, which ended the Left Front's 34-year rule in West Bengal, the world's longest-serving democratically elected communist government.