People's Democracy

Rich Tributes Paid To Dipankar Mukherjee

HELD at Speakers Hall on the Constitution Club, New Delhi on July 3, 2012, a condolence meeting paid rich tributes to Comrade Dipankar Mukherjee. The meeting witnessed overflowing participation by workers and trade union activists from Delhi and adjoining states. Besides, many people from other walks of life across political affiliations and many media personalities also attended.

The meeting was also joined by the leadership of almost all the central trade union organisations, many industrial federations and also by leaders of the All India Kisan Sabha, All India Agricultural Workers’ Union, SFI, DYFI, All India Democratic Women’s Association and other mass organisations.

CITU secretary Swadesh Dev Roye welcomed the participants while CITU president A K Padmanabhan presided over the meeting. While paying tribute to the departed comrade, Padmanabhan spoke on his commitment to the cause of the toiling people, which attracted one and all, across the trade union and political affiliations. CITU general secretary Tapan Sen placed the condolence resolution. On this occasion, he spoke on Comrade Dipankar’s life and leading role in the trade union movement and as a CITU organiser, his impressive contribution to the cause of workers and the people at large during his eventful days in parliament for 12 long years from 1994 to 2006, his skilled and indepth articulation on all the issues facing the working people, and his class-based penetrating analysis of industry and other segments of the national economy.   

Gurudas Dasgupta, MP and general secretary of the AITUC, recalled the powerful debating and oratorical capacity of Comrade Dipankar as a parliamentarian and his numerous combative interventions against the anti-people policies of the government. While paying homage to his memory, Dasgupta also recalled his active role in the united trade union movement.  

A N Dogra of the BMS, while placing rich tribute to the departed leader, recalled his down-to earth approach in dealing with the problems and issues facing the workers and the trade union movement. His sudden demise is no doubt a shock, not only to the CITU but the entire trade union fraternity including the BMS, Shri Dogra stated.

P Raju of the INTUC recalled his pleasing association with Dipankar Mukherjee in all joint meetings and programmes, and also recalled his rich contribution in shaping the decisions in a right direction.

H S Sidhu, general secretary of the HMS, stated that Comrade Dipankar’s death has caused a big loss to the entire trade union movement and that the best way to pay homage to his memory is to jointly strive to carry forward the cause for which he worked throughout his life.

Swapan Mukherjee, general secretary of the AICCTU, talked about Comrade Dipankar’s commitment to class struggle and his articulation of issues with a clear class orientation.

R K Sharma of the AIUTUC recalled the pleasing association of his “beloved Dipankar-da” and talked about the latter’s commitment to working class unity and his insistence on carrying the same down to the workplace level in order to make the intervention more effective. 

Condolence messages were received from many eminent personalities all over the country, including union labour minister Mallikarjun Kharge and Jairam Ramesh, minister of rural development in the government of India.   

The meeting ended with observance of silence in memory of Comrade Dipankar Mukherjee.   

Earlier, the CPI(M) organised a condolence meeting in memory of Comrade Depankar Mukherjee at its headquarters, AKG Bhavan, on Friday, June 29. The meeting recalled the services rendered by the departed comrade to the party and the trade union movement as a leading cadre. CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat presided over the meeting. In his introductory remarks, Karat underlined the late Comrade Dipankar’s unique contribution to the evolution of the party’s policies on trade union issues and on the economic issues in general. Comrade Dipankar’s demise, Karat added, is the untimely lost of a valuable comrade from whom the party was expecting still bigger and more contribution.

CITU president and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member A K Padmanabhan talked about Comrade Dipankar’s key role at the CITU centre and described his demise as an irreparable loss for the CITU and the trade union movement in general. Nilotpal Basu referred to Comrade Dipankar’s 12 years long stint in Rajya Sabha where he made his mark as a defender of the public sector industries.

The comrades working at the party centre and in the head offices of various mass organisations maintained one-minute silence in memory of this extraordinary comrade.