NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, SEPT 12
Veteran Communist leader and CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury died following prolonged illness on Thursday afternoon. He was 72. Yechury was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)-Delhi on August 19 with acute pneumonia-like respiratory tract infection. He had been in a critical condition for the last few days and was on oxygen support.
- The 72-year-old party general secretary was undergoing treatment for acute respiratory tract infection at AIIMS-Delhi
- The late leader will be lying in repose at the CPI(M) headquarters in Delhi on September 14 and the public can pay homage between 11 am and 3 pm
- The mortal remains will be taken to the AIIMS, where it will be donated for medical research as per his wishes
According to reports, he also had a fungal infection in his lungs.
On August 22, Yechury had released a six-minute video from the hospital on his social media accounts paying condolence to Buddhadev Bhattacharya, former chief minister of West Bengal, who passed away on August 8.
On September 10, the CPI(M) released a statement, saying Yechury’s health had turned critical.
The late leader will be lying in repose at the CPI(M) headquarters in Delhi on September 14 and the public can pay homage between 11 am and 3 pm, the party said.
The mortal remains will be later taken to the AIIMS, where it will be donated for medical research as per his wishes.
Yechury had succeeded Prakash Karat as the CPI-M chief in 2015.
The Left leader, who recently underwent a cataract surgery, was a member of the CPI-M’s Politburo, the top decision-making body, for over three decades.
He was also a member of the Rajya Sabha from 2005 to 2017.
Sitaram Yechury ji was a friend.
A protector of the Idea of India with a deep understanding of our country.
I will miss the long discussions we used to have. My sincere condolences to his family, friends, and followers in this hour of grief. pic.twitter.com/6GUuWdmHFj
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 12, 2024
Mourning his passing away, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said: “Sitaram Yechury ji was a friend. A protector of the Idea of India with a deep understanding of our country”.
“I will miss the long discussions we used to have. My sincere condolences to his family, friends, and followers in this hour of grief,” he said in a post on X.
“ADIEUCOMRADE Sitaram Yechury Students’ Federation of India dips its banner in honour of our beloved comrade, former All India President of SFI and General Secretary of CPI(M), Sitaram Yechury,” the party’s student wing said on X.
