Kolkata: Krishna Bose, an academician-turned-politician who was a three-time parliamentarian from West Bengal, died on Saturday due to age-related ailments. She was 89.
Bose, the former Trinamool Congress MP from Jadavpur constituency in Kolkata, was unwell for quite some time. She died at a private hospital off EM Bypass at 10.22 am, according to the sources.
Bose was admitted to the hospital with irregular heartbeat Sunday, and suffered a cerebral infarction Monday and remained in critical condition, a doctor said.
“She was suffering from age-related ailments for quite some time. She suffered her second stroke a few days ago and was admitted to the ICU,” her son, Sumantra Bose, said.
Her other son, Sugata Bose, historian and a former TMC MP, said she was agile days before her death and had been active in two important programmes at the Netaji Research Bureau January 23 and February 2.
“However, due to irregular heartbeat, she was admitted to the hospital on February 16,” he said.
She was married to Sisir Kumar Bose, nephew of Subhas Chandra Bose.
Born December 26, 1930, to constitutional expert Charu Chandra Chaudhuri in Dhaka, Bose taught at the City College in Kolkata for around 40 years. She headed the English department for several years and also became the principal of the college.
Though Bose started in active politics as a member of the Congress, she was close to Mamata Banerjee and switched sides when the TMC was formed.
Bose was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1996 on a Congress ticket, then in 1998 and 1999 as a TMC candidate.
She is survived by sons Sugata and Sumantra, and daughter Sharmila. Sugata, the Gardiner Professor of History at Harvard University, had won from the Jadavpur constituency on a TMC ticket in the 2014 Lok Sabha election.
Bose was Chair of the Council of the Netaji Research Bureau and also headed the parliamentary standing committee on external affairs during her third stint as the MP.
She had written several books, including ‘Netaji: A Biography for the Young’, ‘Ek Nambar Bari’ ‘An Outsider in Politics’, ‘Itihaser Sandhane’, ‘Charanarekha Taba’, ‘Prasanga Subhaschandra’, ‘Netaji: A Biography for the Young’ and ‘Emilie and Subhas: A True Love Story’.
Her body was taken to her Sarat Bose Road residence in south Kolkata around 1 pm and then brought to the Netaji Bhavan on Elgin Road. She was cremated with full state honours on Saturday evening.
The chief minister told reporters that Krishna Bose had kept the legacy of the Subhas Chandra Bose’s family alive through her work and was in a thick of things even a few days before her death.
“I lost someone respected, loved & admired by me. Saddened & shocked to hear about the demise of Krishna Basu, ex-TMC MP & wife of freedom fighter Dr Sisir Bose,” Banerjee tweeted. “Being a part of Netaji’s family, she was a revered social reformer, renowned poet & a courageous educationalist.”
“Krishna di was a mother to her son’s Sumantra & Sugata, daughter Sarmila as well as the whole Trinamool family. Her immense contribution to Indian society & Bengali culture will be revered for times to come,” the chief minister added.
Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, who visited the Netaji Research Bureau to pay his tributes to Bose, said the death of “a towering giant in West Bengal” had left a void which cannot be filled.
Dhankhar said Bose’s tenure as the chairperson of the parliamentary committee was significant and she would be remembered for “her sublimity, grace, knowledge and motherly love”.
Bharatiya Janata Party state president Dilip Ghosh described Bose as a scholarly person whose death was a great loss for the country.
Rajya Sabha MP and Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi, who was in the city, also condoled her death.
PTI
