JP Nadda and Leaders Pay Tribute to Late Sitaram Yechury in Delhi

Union Minister and BJP national President JP Nadda on Friday paid floral tribute to late Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury at his residence in Delhi’s Vasant Kunj. Remembering Yechury, Nadda said that he maintained relationships with those whose views differed from his own.

Nadda wrote in a post on X, ‘Paid floral tribute to the mortal remains of Former Rajya Sabha MP and General Secretary of the CPI (M) late Shri Sitaram Yechury ji. We both had different ideologies. He was a person more inclined towards ideas, but at the same time, he maintained relationships with those whose views differed from his own. He believed in agreeing to disagree and often said that this is the beauty of democracy.’

Nadda added, ‘May God grant him eternal peace and give his family the strength to endure this pain.’

Reflecting on his memories of the late CPI(M) leader, Nadda said he was very firm in his ideas and he devoted his whole life to propagating those ideas but being a social person, we can never forget his personal relationship and humanistic approach.

‘My friend Sitaram Yechury is no more among us… Sitaram Yechury used to come to Himachal from JNU to propagate his ideology and I have known him since then. We both belonged to different ideologies. He was very firm in his ideas and he devoted his whole life to propagate those ideas but being a social person we can never forget his personal relationship, humanistic approach. So I can say that he was a person who was more inclined towards ideas but at the same time, he also maintained relations with those people of the society who were different from his ideology. He believed that we agree to disagree and he used to say that this is the beauty of democracy. May God give him a place in his feet and give strength to all the members of his family to bear this grief,’ Nadda told ANI.

Earlier, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, among other leaders, also arrived at Yechury’s residence to pay their last respects.

‘Everybody is in grief. It is a big loss for his party, friends and family…We are there with the family in this hour of grief…He was a man of conviction, who stood by his ideas and ideals and was fully committed to what he believed in. I offer my heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and colleagues,’ Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan said while speaking to the media.

Expressing grief over Yechury’s death, CPI leader D Raja said that it was a big loss for the communist left movement in the country. ‘It is a great loss for the entire communist left movement in the country. We had a very long association, for decades. We worked together closely, he left us but his life will remain with us as a source of inspiration. His legacy will be carried forward,’ CPI leader D Raja said.

Yechury’s mortal remains were taken to Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) from AIIMS on Friday afternoon. Yechury was admitted to the AIIMS, Delhi, on August 19, 2024. He had been first admitted to the emergency ward and then shifted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Sitaram Yechury was a prominent Indian politician who held a seat in the CPM politburo for 32 years and served as the party’s general secretary from 2015. Additionally, he represented West Bengal in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament, from 2005 to 2017.