Kamal Guha

Infobox Person
name = Kamal Guha


image_size =
caption =
birth_date = 20 January 1928
birth_place = Dinhata
death_date = 6 August 2007
death_place = Cooch Behar
occupation = Politician
spouse =

Kamal Guha (1928 – 2007) was an Indian politician. He was a Forward Bloc leader and member of the Left Front cabinet in the Indian state of West Bengal for over two decades.cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=6&id=165424&usrsess=1
title = Death of a rare visionary | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = The Statesman, 7 August 2008]

Early life

Born at Dinhata on January 20, 1928, he passed his matriculation from Dinhata High School where former president of Bangladesh, Hossain Mohammad Ershad was his classmate, and passed Intermediate Arts from Victoria College (now ABN Seal College) in Cooch Behar.cite web | url = http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/004200708062071.htm
title = Kamal Guha dies | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = The Hindu, 7 August 2008] Guha was inspired by Subhas Chandra Bose at a very young age. He decided to join politics when he was still a student and Forward Bloc seemed to be the obvious choice.

Political career

Guha won his first election to the West Bengal Legislative Assembly in 1962. He contested and won the Dinhata seat in every election except 1971. In the 2006 Assembly election he quit from contesting the Dinhata seat. He became member of the cabinet in 1977, 1982,1987 and 2001 and headed the departments of agriculture, agriculture marketing and public health engineering.

Guha had a major contribution in strengthening the party in West Bengal. In the late 80s, he took up the cause of people living the enclaves. In 1992 he was expelled by his party because of severe differences over handing over the Teen Bigha corridor to Bangladesh. Unperturbed, he formed Forward Bloc (Socialist) and won against the official Left Front candidate at Dinhata. After about seven years he returned to the Forward Bloc.

Guha was seen as an anti-CPI(M) voice within the Left Front. He was vociferous against the state government’s market-driven farm policy. [cite web | url = http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070807/asp/bengal/story_8160530.asp | title = Kamal Guha dead | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = The Telegraph, 7 August 2008] In 2002, he had said that the indiscriminate recruitment of CPI(M) cadres by government departments and frequent increase in their salary has made the West Bengal government bankrupt. [cite web | url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/26807683.cms
title = Kamal Guha casts one more stone at CPM | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = Times of India, 1 November 2002]

Guha was not keeping well in later life and died on 6 August 2007.Condoling his death the Forward Bloc leader Debabrata Biswas said that Guha was a “leader of the people and always fought for the rights of the toiling masses.”

References

Persondata
NAME= Kamal Guha
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Politician
DATE OF BIRTH= 20 January 1928
PLACE OF BIRTH= Dinhata
DATE OF DEATH= 6 August 2007
PLACE OF DEATH= Cooch Behar