Sailen Sarkar (18 July 1940 —31 December 2013) was a Communist Party of India (Marxist) politician, a state government minister, a five-time MLA and a CPI(M) secretariat member.

the old days

Born on 18 July 1940 in Barisal, present-day Bangladesh, he was a teacher in his early life. In 1956, he joined the movement against the merger of Bengal and Bihar. He became a member of the Communist Party of undivided India in 1960

electoral achievement

Sailen Sarkar was elected to the West Bengal Legislative Assembly on a CPI(M) ticket from the English market in 1977, 1982 and 1987.

During this period he served as Minister of State for Municipal Affairs and Urban Development in the Left Front Ministry of West Bengal from 1982 to 1987.

He was elected from Ratua in 2001 and 2006.

He was Minister of Food Processing from 2001 to 2006 and Minister of Environment and Parliamentary Affairs from 2006 to 2011.

The Statesman wrote, "Sarkar contested parliamentary elections four times but was unsuccessful. In 1991, he lost by a hairline margin of 1,820 votes against the redoubtable Congress leader, Mr. Gani Khan Chaudhary."

He was the district CPI(M) secretary in the nineties and was a member of the CPI(M) editorial board till his last days.

Family and Death

His wife Swati Sarkar died a year ago and he is survived by his siblings. Sailen Sarkar died on 31 December 2013 at a nursing home in Malda after a brief illness. He was 73 years old

State tourism minister, Krishnendu Narayan Chowdhury paid tributes by laying wreaths and said: "The government was devoted to his party and sacrificed a lot for Left Front politics. His service as a responsible minister will always be remembered."

Maldah North MP, Mausam Noor paid tributes and said: "The government always maintained a friendly relationship with the opposition parties. He was the perfect combination of a skilled political leader and a successful administrator."

State Social Welfare Minister and District Trinamool Congress President Savitri Mitra expressed condolences to Sarkar's family.