Bhubaneswar: Former Speaker of Odisha Legislative Assembly Sarat Kar is no more. He was 81.
A noted politician, writer and columnist, Kar had been suffering from age-related diseases and was undergoing treatment at a private hospital here. He breathed his last at about 3.20pm. The news of his demise came as a shock to all sections of the society.
Kar was born at Maheshpur village in Cuttack district September 5, 1939. After completing his education from Allahabad University in 1964, he joined politics. He worked as an associate of former Chief Minister late Biju Patnaik till the latter breathed his last.
Kar was elected to Odisha Assembly thrice. He became Minister for Education and Culture in the Biswanath Das-led coalition government in 1971. In 1977, he was elected to the Parliament from Cuttack Lok Sabha constituency. He defeated Congress heavyweight leader Janaki Ballabh Patnaik. Kar was also the speaker of Odisha Legislative Assembly from 2000 to 2004.
‘Druta Bilambita’, ‘Manthan’, ‘Romanthan’, and ‘Ananya’ are the four poetry books he penned. All of them received accolades from the readers. Those apart, he wrote a large number of articles on topics ranging from political, social and literary matters for newspapers and magazines.
PNN
