India's ex-Lok Sabha Speaker and veteran communist leader Somnath Chatterjee passed away on Monday at the age of eighty-nine.
He was admitted to a private hospital for kidney-related ailment. His condition deteriorated on Sunday after he suffered a mild heart attack.
Last month, the former speaker had suffered a hemorrhagic stroke.
Calling him a stalwart of Indian politics, Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, said, “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.”
Congress president Rahul Gandhi, while mourning the loss, said, “He was an institution. Greatly respected and admired by all parliamentarians, across party lines. My condolences to his family at this time of grief.”
Chatterjee, a ten-time Lok Sabha MP, was the Speaker from 2004 to 2009 during the UPA-I regime. He was expelled by the CPI (M) for not quitting as Speaker after the party withdrew support from the UPA-I over the Indo-US nuclear deal.
Source: Economic Times