Somnath adieu to active politics
Indian Parliament,in its history, has had a galaxy of eminent Speakers inspired dignity and prestige to the Chair. Shri Somnath Chatterjee joined this illustrious line of Speakers, when he was elected unanimously to the exalted position on 4 June 2004.Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh said that the office of Lok Sabha Speaker has been truly elevated and dignified by Mr Somnath Chatterjee, who set himself as a role model.
Somnath became a Member of the Lok Sabha in 1971,elected the first time as an independent candidate supported by the CPI(M).Therafter he was re-elected 9 times, except once when he lost to Mamata Banerjee in the Jadavpur Lok Sabha constituency in 1984. He from 1989 to 2004 he was the leader of his party in the Lok Sabha. He was elected for the tenth time in 2004 as a member of the present 14th Lok Sabha from Bolpur Lok Sabha constituency, which is considered to be a CPI(M) stronghold. Following the election, on June 4, 2004 he was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the 14th Lok Sabha.
Prime Minister’s statement in the Lok Sabha on the last day of its term was read out by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is the Leader of the House.
Chatterjee married Renu Chatterjee, who comes from the royal family (Rajbari) in Lalgola, on February 7, 1950[2]. The couple have one son, Pratap and two daughters, Anuradha and Anushila.
Somnath Chatterjee is known for his fiscal integrity. When in 2004, as speaker, he moved into the official residence at 20 Akbar Road, he discontinued the practice of paying for toiletries and tea from the national exchequer. On trips abroad, he bears the expenses of any accompanying family member.Fouteenth Lok Sabha passed 258 legislation including the land mark Right to Information and National Rural Employment Guarantee during its 332 sittings.
In his concluding remarks, the Speaker Mr. Somnath Chatterjee also referred to the two memorable occasions of celebrating the 150th anniversary of country’s 1st War of Independence and 60th year of Independence in the Central Hall of Parliament.
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