Ajit Kumar Panja (13 September 1936 – 14 November 2008) was a Union minister of state in the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

. He was a member of

Indian National Congress party The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...

but left it to join

Trinamool Congress The All India Trinamool Congress (English: All India Grassroots Congress; AITC), colloquially the Trinamool Congress ( TMC) is an Indian political party which is predominantly active in West Bengal. The party is led by Mamata Banerjee, the cur ...

. He was born in

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

, and studied law at the

Scottish Church College, Calcutta Scottish Church College is a college affiliated by Calcutta University, India. It offers selective co-educational undergraduate and postgraduate studies and is the oldest continuously running Christian liberal arts and sciences college in A ...

and at the

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

. His Native village was a small village in

Burdwan Bardhaman (, ) is a city and a municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of Purba Bardhaman district, having become a district capital during the period of British rule. Burdwan, an alternative name for the city, ...

district, named Majigram. A lawyer by profession, he authored many books. He was also a

stage actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lite ...

who enacted the role of

Ramakrishna Paramahansa Ramakrishna Paramahansa ( bn, রামকৃষ্ণ পরমহংস, Ramôkṛṣṇo Pôromohôṅso; , 18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886),——— — also spelled Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, born Gadadhar Chattopadhyaya,, was an In ...

in Kolkata.

Life and career

Ajit Kumar Panja was born in Kolkata on 13 September 1936. His father was Dhanapati Panja. Apart from political career he started performing on stage theatre in the role of "Sri Ramakrishma Paramhansa" in the play "Sri Sri Ramakrishna" (made according to the story of ''

Noti Binodini Noti may refer to: * Noti, Oregon, a settlement in the US * Notia, a village in Greece * NotI, an enzyme * Károly Nóti Károly Nóti (1 February 1892 – 28 May 1954) was a Hungarian screenwriter. For his work in Germany and Britain he was cre ...

'' written by Late. Brajendra Kishore Dey) organised by Kolkata High Court Advocate's Drama Association in India. The play was staged in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and USA (Washington, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles). Ajit Panja died of

oral cancer Oral cancer, also known as mouth cancer, is cancer of the lining of the lips, mouth, or upper throat. In the mouth, it most commonly starts as a painless white patch, that thickens, develops red patches, an ulcer, and continues to grow. When on ...

on 14 November 2008 at the

Peerless Hospital Peerless Group is an Indian business conglomerate headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal. It was established in 1932 by industrialist Radhashyam Roy (then a School Teacher) in Narayanganj, Bangladesh. Its major holding company is Peerless Gen ...

Positions held

*1971,1972-77 Member,

West Bengal Legislative Assembly The West Bengal Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian states and territories of India, state of West Bengal. It is located in the B. B. D. Bagh area of Kolkata, the capital of the state. Members of the Legislative as ...

and 1982–84 *1971-72 Cabinet Minister, Judiciary and Parliamentary Affairs (Home),

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

*1972-77 Cabinet Minister, Health and Family Planning and Water Supply, *1973 Member, All India Congress Committee (A.I.C.C.) *1977 President, District Congress Committee (D.C.C.) (I), North Calcutta, West Bengal *1980-81 President, Pradesh Congress Committee (P.C.C.)(I), West Bengal *1984 Elected to 8th

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

*1985-86 Union Minister of State, Planning *1986 Union Minister of State, Food and Civil Supplies *1986-88 Union Minister of State, Information and Broadcasting (Independent Charge) *1988-89 Union Minister of State, Finance *1989 Re-elected to 9th Lok Sabha (2nd term) *1990 Member, Committee of Privileges Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Finance *1990-91 Member, Committee on Public Accounts Member, Informal Consultative Committee, Railway Zone *1991 Re-elected to 10th Lok Sabha (3rd term) *1991-93 Union Minister of State, Information and Broadcasting (Independent Charge) *1993-95 Union Minister of State, Coal (Independent Charge) *1996 Re-elected to 11th Lok Sabha (4th term) *1996-97 Member, Committee on Energy Member, Business Advisory Committee *1998 Re-elected to 12th Lok Sabha (5th term) Chief Whip, West Bengal

Parliamentary Party *1998-99 Member, Committee on Industry Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Urban Affairs and Employment Chairman, West Bengal Trinamool Congress *1999 Re-elected to 13th Lok Sabha (6th term) *13 Oct 1999 to 2004 Union Minister of State, External Affairs

Books published

*Encephalitis Attack in West Bengal *CPM Gun Shoot to Kill (English and Bengali) *Ganatantra Hatya (Bengali) *Siksha Khethre Nairajya (Bengali) *Sansad Bichitra (Bengali) *PM (Sh. V.P. Singh) challenged to prove charges (English) *Dunkel Agreement (Bengali) *Unemployment Problems in India How to solve it (Bengali) *Era of Excellence of Narasimha Rao Govt 4th Yr-Major Achievements and Decisions *Mining Medicines Hand Book for Health Workers and Mine Workers

References

External links

Ajit Panja

Official biographical sketch in Parliament of India website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Panja, Ajit Kumar Scottish Church College alumni University of Calcutta alumni Members of Lincoln's Inn Deaths from cancer in India Deaths from oral cancer 1936 births 2008 deaths Politicians from Kolkata India MPs 1984–1989 India MPs 1989–1991 India MPs 1991–1996 India MPs 1996–1997 India MPs 1998–1999 India MPs 1999–2004 West Bengal MLAs 1971–1972 West Bengal MLAs 1972–1977 West Bengal MLAs 1982–1987 Trinamool Congress politicians from West Bengal Lok Sabha members from West Bengal State cabinet ministers of West Bengal Ministers for Information and Broadcasting of India Indian National Congress politicians from West Bengal