Veteran politician and state panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee passed away on Thursday evening following a cardiac arrest. He was 75 and is survived by his wife. The minister was admitted to SSKM Hospital for last one week following heart-related complications. He had undergone angioplasty and two stent were placed to clear blockages in his heart. He was scheduled to be discharged from the state-run hospital tomorrow. However, he suffered a massive cardiac arrest on Thursday evening and passed away at 9 22 pm. The chief minister who was performing Kali Puja at her Kalighat residence, visited the SSKM Hospital and announced that he is no more. "I still can't believe he is no longer with us. He was such a dedicated party leader. It is a personal loss for me," she said. His body will be taken to Rabindra Sadan, a government-owned auditorium, on Friday for the people to pay their last respect. From there, it will be taken to his Ballygunge home and then to his ancestral home, Ms Banerjee added.
Sources in the hospital said the minister had a 'stent thrombosis', one of the fatal complications of percutaneous coronary intervention. Mukherjee, who was hospitalised on October 24 following breathing problems, underwent angioplasty when two stents were inserted inside his blocked arteries on November 1. He had been suffering from high blood sugar, CoPD and other age-related ailments.A seasoned politician in its truest sense, Mukherjee started his political career as a student activist during his higher education in Kolkata when he joined the Chhatra Parishad in the 1960s. During this period he made the acquaintance of late Congress leader Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi Mukherjee was considered one of the two close aides of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi along with Dasmunsi. In 1971 and 1972, Mukherjee was elected to the state Assembly from Ballygunge Assembly constituency. In 1972, Mukherjee at the age of 26, was appointed as Minister of State in the Siddhartha Shankar Ray ministry as Minister of Information and Cultural Affairs. He also held an additional responsibility as Minister of State for local government. In 1999, Mukherjee joined Mamata Banerjee’s newly formed Trinamool Congress and was made the Mayor of Kolkata in 2000, as a Trinamool Congress candidate. He was credited of changing the city’s landscape with several development projects.