Veteran Congress leader Sohanpal no more

Kolkata: Former Congress minister and MLA Gyan Singh Sohanpal passed away at SSKM Hospital on Tuesday afternoon following old-age related illnesses, including respiratory distress. He was 92. The Trinamul Congress government will accord him state honour during his funeral at his native place in Kharagpur in West Midnapore on Wednesday. 

After he fell ill at his home, Pal was admitted to SSKM where his condition worsened on Monday night. He was put on a ventilator in the critical care unit. At around 3.40 pm on Tuesday, the veteran Congress leader died, sources at the hospital said. Popularly known as “chacha” in the political circuit, Pal, a bachelor, was the Congress legislator for ten times, which is a record in the state.

He was elected as the MLA for the first time in 1962. Pal became the minister twice while the Congress was in power in the state. From 1982 to 2011, Pal was elected from Kharagpur Assembly constituency at a stretch. He earned immense respect from all political parties. Pal contested the Assembly election in 2016 but he was defeated to state BJP president Dilip Ghosh. Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi and CM Mamata Banerjee mourned his death.