The BJP and the Congress today condoled the death of veteran Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu, describing him as one of the tallest contemporary leaders of Indian politics.
Senior BJP leader and leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley said Basu was a man “committed to the service of his people, his ideology and a sense of idealism“.
“Jyoti Basu was one of the tallest contemporary leaders of Indian politics,” Jaitley said.
95-year-old Basu died at a Kolkata hospital after battling multi-organ failure.
“He was a politician of high credibility whose loss will be felt by the entire nation,” Jaitley said on West Bengal’s longest serving Chief Minister.
“BJP deeply mourns his death,” he said.
Congress pays tribute
Describing veteran CPI-M leader Jyoti Basu as one of the country’s “worthiest sons”, Congress today condoled his demise.
“It’s a very sad development not only for West Bengal or CPI-M but for the country as a whole. The country has lost one of its worthiest sons,” party spokesperson Shakeel Ahmad said.
Basu stood for simplicity and firmness at the same time in public life and “his death is a loss for the nation,” he said.