Odisha: Veteran communist leader Sivaji Patnaik passes away

BHUBANESWAR: Veteran communist leader and former Bhubaneswar MP Sivaji Patnaik passed away here at 2.10 pm on Monday. He was 92. He was one of the main founders of the Odisha unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
The Left party leader is survived by his wife, three sons and a daughter. He was admitted to a hospital on Sunday after the potassium level in his blood dropped. His body will be brought to the party’s state headquarters near Jaydev Vihar here at 10am on Tuesday for the last darshan.
“Comrade Sivaji Patnaik had a wish that his body will be donated to a hospital after his death. After consulting with our leader’s family members, we have decided that we will donate his body to AIIMS Bhubaneswar on Tuesday afternoon,” said CPI(M) state secretary Ali Kishore Patnaik.
Odisha governor Ganeshi Lal, chief minister Naveen Patnaik, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, senior congress leader Niranjan Patnaik and other dignitaries condoled the death of the communist leader.
The veteran leader had won three times in CPI(M) tickets from Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seat in 1977, 1989 and 1991 by defeating Congress candidates. He had defeated Bipin Dash of Congress in 1, 45,346 votes in 1989. Bhubaneswar was a bastion of communist party, but it lost the grip over the constituency later.
CPI(M) State secretary said Sivaji Patnaik had received his party membership in 1947 from the undivided communist party. “He was a member of the CPI(M) since the beginning of the party. He has nurtured and trained many communist leaders including me. He has fought several people’s movements to protect the rights of common people especially marginalised sections of the society during his lifetime. His death is the end of an era,” he added.
He was the second state secretary of CPI(M) Odisha unit after Banamali Das. He remained in the post starting from 1972 to 1990. He was a member of the party’s Central committee from 1978 to 1989. He was the first state president of Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU).
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