Sitaram Yechury, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)], passed away on September 12, 2024, at the age of 72. Yechury had been undergoing treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi for an acute respiratory tract infection. He leaves behind his wife, Seema Chishti, and two children—a son and a daughter. Yechury’s elder son, Ashish Yechury, had tragically succumbed to COVID-19 in 2021.
The news of his death was confirmed by CPI(M) leader Hannan Mollah, who shared, “Sitaram Yechury CPI(M) general secretary no more. He was admitted in AIIMS.”
Yechury had been battling a pneumonia-like chest infection since August 19 and was being treated in the intensive care unit at AIIMS by a multidisciplinary team of doctors.
His last public appearance came through a video message from the hospital, where he paid tribute to former West Bengal Chief Minister and fellow comrade Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, who passed away in August 2024.
Yechury, who had served as CPI(M)’s General Secretary since 2015, was a prominent leader in India’s leftist movement. He had been a member of the party’s Polit Bureau for more than three decades and was closely associated with the party’s student wing, the Student Federation of India (SFI). He rose to prominence as president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union, famously challenging the then-Chancellor, Indira Gandhi.
Throughout his career, Yechury was known for his strong advocacy of coalition politics. He played a significant role in shaping the common minimum programmes for the United Front government in 1996 and the UPA governments in 2004 and 2009. He also contributed to the formation of the INDIA bloc ahead of the 2023 General Elections.
Yechury served as a two-time Rajya Sabha member and will be remembered for his significant political contributions, including his successful motion against President Pranab Mukherjee’s address in 2015, which marked a rare victory for the opposition in the Upper House.
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