Gurudas Dasgupta (3 November 1936 – 31 October 2019) was an Indian politician and a leader of the

Communist Party of India Communist Party of India (CPI) is the oldest Marxist–Leninist communist party in India and one of the nine national parties in the country. The CPI was founded in modern-day Kanpur (formerly known as Cawnpore) on 26 December 1925. H ...

. In the 1950s and 60s, he held several offices as a student leader. Later he was a member of

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...

for three terms from 1985 to 2000 and of

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 ...

for two terms from 2004 to 2014.

Biography

Gurudas Dasgupta was born to Nihar Devi and Durga Prosanna Dasgupta on 3 November 1936 in

Barisal Barisal ( or ; bn, বরিশাল, ), officially known as Barishal, is a major city that lies on the banks of the Kirtankhola river in south-central Bangladesh. It is the largest city and the administrative headquarter of both Barisal Dist ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

(now in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

). On 18 June 1965, he married Jayashri Das Gupta. He entered politics as a student leader. He served as the General Secretary of Asutosh College Students' Union in 1957 as well as the President and General Secretary of Undivided Bengal Provincial Students' Federation from 1958 to 1960. In 1965, he was detained under the Defence of India rules. He went into hiding several times during the 1950s–60s. Dasgupta was the General Secretary of the West Bengal Committee of

All India Youth Federation The All India Youth Federation (AIYF) is a nationwide youth organisation of Communist Party of India founded on May 3, 1959. AIYF is affiliated to World Federation of Democratic Youth. And member of general council of WFDY. Formation It was be ...

from 1967 to 1977. He was also General Secretary of West Bengal Youth Festival Preparatory Committee in 1968, 1970 and 1973. He led the Indian delegation at the World Youth Congress held in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

in 1970. He remained in

(CPI) following its split in 1964. In 1970s, he worked in the labour wing of the CPI. He served as the Vice President of

All India Trade Union Congress The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) is the oldest trade union federation in India. It is associated with the Communist Party of India. According to provisional statistics from the Ministry of Labour, AITUC had a membership of 14.2 mill ...

and

Bharatiya Khet Mazdoor Union Bharatiya Khet Mazdoor Union literally 'Indian Land Workers Union' is a trade union of agricultural labourers in India. BKMU is politically tied to the Communist Party of India (CPI). BKMU is independent from both the main trade union central o ...

. He worked as a parliamentarian for 25 years. He was elected as a member of the

in 1985, 1988 and 1994. Dasgupta was elected as the General Secretary of the

(AITUC) in 2001. He was elected as a member of National Secretariat of CPI in 2004. In 2004, he was elected to the

14th Lok Sabha The 14th Lok Sabha (17 May 2004 – 18 May 2009) was convened after the 2004 Indian general election held in four phases during 20 April – 10 May 2004, which led to the formation of first Manmohan Singh ministry (2004–2009). Indian Nationa ...

from

Panskura Panskura is a town and a municipality in Purba Medinipur district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is situated on the banks of the Kangsabati River (variously known as Kasai and Cossye). Etymology 1. According to many references, the ...

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 ...

. In 2009, he was elected to the

15th Lok Sabha Members of the 15th Lok Sabha were elected during the 2009 general election in India. It was dissolved on 18 May 2014 by President Pranab Mukherjee. Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance won 44 more seats than the previou ...

from

Ghatal Ghatal is a city and a municipality in Paschim Medinipur district, West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Ghatal subdivision. History In ancient times, when Tamralipta was an active port, Ghatal had its own ‘Bandar’ (port), 3&n ...

in West Bengal. He was a member of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the

Harshad Mehta Harshad Shantilal Mehta (29 July 1954 — 31 December 2001) was an Indian stockbroker and a convicted fraudster. Mehta's involvement in the 1992 Indian securities scam made him infamous as a market manipulator. Of the 27 criminal charges br ...

scam and on the

2G spectrum case The 2G spectrum case was a political controversy in which politicians and private officials of the United Progressive Alliance coalition government India were involved in selling or allotting 122 2G spectrum licenses on conditions that provi ...

. Dasgupta died on 31 October 2019 due to complications of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Dasgupta, Gurudas 1936 births 2019 deaths People from Barisal People from Barisal District India MPs 2004–2009 India MPs 2009–2014 Trade unionists from West Bengal Asutosh College alumni University of Calcutta alumni Communist Party of India politicians from West Bengal Lok Sabha members from West Bengal Rajya Sabha members from West Bengal People from Paschim Medinipur district Deaths from lung cancer