Farewell to Samar Mukherjee

Thousands of people bid farewell to legendary Communist leader Comrade Samar Mukherjee in Kolkata. He was the oldest member of CPI(M) in the whole country. His hundredth birthday was celebrated in November, 2012.

Comrade Samar Mukherjee breathed his last in a private hospital in Kolkata where he was admitted. He used to stay in Party commune.

Comrade Mukherjee’s body was taken to Howrah, his native place and principal area of his political activity for decades. He also represented Howrah loksabha constituency for three terms. From the district Party office, Comrade Mukherjee’s body was brought to UCRC ( the organization for refugees which he was the foremost leader for seven decades) office in Kolkata and then to CITU West Bengal state office.

Comrade Samarda’s body was brought to CPI(M) state office at around 5-15PM. Thousands of people already stood in line outside the Party office to pay homage to him. Polit Bureau members Biman Basu, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Nirupam Sen, Brinda Karat, MA Baby, veteran leaders Benoy Konar, Md. Amin  paid floral tributes to him. CPI(M) central committee members, state committee members and leaders of mass organizations paid their respect. Left Front leaders, including Forward Block leader Ashoke Ghosh, CPI state secretary Manjukumar Majumdar paid their last respect.

A funeral rally started from Party office with leaders in the front. Thousands followed , chanting the Internationale.  Comrade Mukherjee’s body was donated to NRS Medical College and Hospital for scientific research. - See more at: http://www.cpimwb.org.in/current_topic_details.php?topic_id=433#sthash.WEUNa6ge.dpuf

Samar Mukherjee exemplified what a Communist should be : Marcus Dam

 (Article From The Hindu Newspaper)

He was born before the October Revolution in Russia, saw the rise and fall of the world’s first socialist State and others that followed, was witness to subsequent changes in the global political order. But Samar Mukherjee’s faith in Marxism was unwavering, his dedication to the cause remaining steadfast even in the face of all the odds.

 Described once by another Marxist great, Jyoti Basu, as “God’s Own Man” Samar Mukherjee, a veteran of the Communist movement in the country, was the epitome of sincerity to the cause.

 On the occasion of his centenary birthday on November 7 last year Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat recalled that much of Samar Mukherjee’s salary and allowances when he was MP would be taken over by the party, yet be would deposit every year a cheque for the party fund. He exemplified what the life of a Communist should be.

 He lived a spartan life, long years of it in a commune, in Howrah and then in Kolkata; he was dedicated to the party, contributing all his energies to whatever task it assigned him. One who never “overate” or “overslept”, some in the party remember. Such was his commitment to the cause that the CPI (M) leadership had decided to do what it had done only once before in its history: officially celebrating the birthday of a leader. The first was that of another pioneer in the Communist movement, Muzzaffar Ahmad who died in 1973. When it was Samar Mukherjee’s turn to be felicitated he had turned 100.

 Considered the “living history of the Communism in India” Samar Mukherjee will be remembered for his dedication to the cause of workers and peasants, that of the deprived people as a whole. From freedom fighter to a stalwart of the Left movement in the country, the journey was a long one indeed.

 Samar Mukherjee who joined India’s struggle for Independence as a student — once thrown out of school for protesting against the Simon Commission — became a member of the Communist Party of India in 1940. When the party split in 1964 he joined the CPI (M) and was actively involved in its State and national organisational matters. He was a member of the party’s Polit Bureau for 14 years till 1992 and was also the first chairman of its disciplinary body, the Central Control Commission.

He was a key personality in the trade union movement in the country and one of the architects of the historical railway strike in 1974. He was at the vanguard of the struggle for the protection of civil liberties and democratic rights during the Emergency.

Soft-spoken, he was seldom heard to have raised his voice, not even when making a strong assertion or putting forth a forceful argument in the Lok Sabha, recalls CPI (M) central committee member Mohd Salim who describes Samar Mukherjee as one of another generation.

A kind-hearted person, he encouraged newcomers to Parliament who looked up to him as leader of the party there; one who took up national issues with the same fervour as he did those more specific to his constituency, Howrah or State, West Bengal.

Samar Mukherjee belonged to that generation of Communist leaders who renounced comforts and had a singularity of purpose. As much as is his life was an inspiration to his younger comrades it is a lesson for them in discipline and commitment as the movement to which he belonged negotiates the twists and turns of changing times.

Comrade Samarda : CITU CONDOLENCE Message

Comrade Samar Mukherjee is no more. After his long journey of 100 years, through many ups and downs, stress and strains, always with the people and the toiling class in the frontline of their struggles, he passed away on 18th July 2013 after a prolonged illness. He leaves behind a indelible imprint of the eventful life of a revolutionary leader, a leader of the working class movement with a vision and determination to work for ending the exploitative system and for establishment of a new society. CITU is proud of having a leader like Com Samar Mukherjee who led the organization in various capacities including as General Secretary and contributed immensely in building the organization and movement brick by brick. With a deep sense of grief, CITU pays homage to the departed leader with the pledge of carrying forward his ideals and vision and the dream he cherished throughout his life. 

Comrade Samar Mukherjee had joined the freedom movement in his early youth and had been a member of the Pradesh Congress Committee. He joined the Communist Party in 1940 and served the Communist movement in various capacities till his death, including as a member of the Central Committee and also Polit Bureau of Communist Party of India (Marxist). Throughout his active political life he remained a valiant fighter against all kinds of deviations like revisionism, sectarianism and opportunism. He was a strong proponent for strict adherence to ideals of Marxism Leninism. He earned immense popularity and distinction as a Parliamentarian, championing the cause of the people and the toiling class in Parliament during the period from 1971 to 1984.

Comrade Samar Mukherjee was associated with the trade union movement of the country since the early days of his political life and played a frontline role in building and expanding the working class movement in the country. He was one of founding figures of CITU and had steered CITU as General Secretary during 1983-1987 and thereafter as a central office-bearer till 2007. He was popular and highly respected in the entire trade union movement, irrespective of affiliation. He played a leading role in the historic railway workers’ strike in 1974 as a leading figure in NCCRS. 

Comrade Samar Mukherjee’s life has been a living history of the Left and working class movement in India. It has also been a commentary of dedication and commitment to the revolutionary cause. He spent major part of his life in Party-Commune. His simplicity, accessibility to all and love for the working class will be remembered ever, by all.

CITU expresses heartfelt grief at the passing away of this great leader and stalwart of the working class movement and dips its flag in respect to the departed leader.