Agartala: Iconic Marxist leader Brajamohan Jamatiya, one of the founders of the Communist movement in Tripura, has died, his family said. He was 106.
Jamatia, a widower, died at his residence at Manu in southern Tripura on Friday night due to old age ailments.
Elected to the state assembly twice, he is survived by five daughters and three sons, a family source said.
The tribal leader joined the undivided Communist Party of India (CPI) in 1950 and switched over to the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) in 1964.
Jamatia, who led a spartan life, was jailed eight times and spent about a decade in prison, a CPI-M statement said.
He remained underground for many years. It was in prison that Jamatia became a literate.
Jamatia was cremated on Saturday afternoon at his ancestral home at Manu, 145 km south of here.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar mourned his death.
“He was a leading soldier against terrorism and a warrior who sought to establish peace and ethnic harmony,” said Sarkar, also a CPI-M politburo member. (IANS)
