Ex-West Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's mortal remains to embark on final journey

Kolkata: The mortal remains of former West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee will be kept at the CPI(M) state headquarters here for leaders and members of the public to pay their last respects before embarking on the last journey to NRS Medical College and Hospital on Friday. Bhattacharjee, who died at his south Kolkata residence on Thursday morning after suffering from prolonged illness related to respiratory issues and old age, had pledged his body.

The former chief minister's body, kept overnight at a mortuary here, will be taken to the state assembly, where it will be kept for half an hour from 11 am, a CPI(M) official said.

His mortal remains will reach CPI(M) state headquarters at Muzaffar Ahmed Bhavan here at 12 pm.

It will be kept there till 3.15 pm for leaders, supporters and members of the public to pay their last respects to the departed leader, whose simplicity drew admirers from across party lines and political ideologies.

The body will thereafter be taken to the state headquarters of DYFI, of which he was one of the founding members, and will be kept there for 15 minutes from 3.30 pm, the party official said.

Bhattacharjee's mortal remains will embark on the last journey from there to the state-run NRS Medical College and Hospital, where it will be handed over for research work.