Tura, March 13: Former three time MLA from Selsella, Atul C Marak passed away here on Sunday morning. He was 80.
Marak first won the Assembly elections in 1983 from the Selsella constituency in West Garo Hills before going on to complete a hat trick of victories in the same constituency. He last contested in the 2013 Assembly elections but lost to the Congress’ Clement Marak.
Marak contested against PA Sangma for the Lok Sabha seat from Tura in 1999 but lost, winning only 24% of votes at the time.
Marak was also a minister in the state government during his tenure. ‘He was one of the last few political stalwarts that the state has lost. I have known him since long and came to know of his demise this morning. He had a long innings in the politics of the state and was instrumental in the early development of the state, AITC leader Mukul Sangma tweeted.