->Partha protim konar at 07:15, 7 January 2022

2022-01-07T07:15:04Z

New page

{{Short description|Indian politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Benoy Choudhury
| native_name = বিনয় চৌধুরী
| image = Michil x.jpg
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1911|1|16|df=y}}
| birth_place = Sutra, Monteswer, [[Bengal Presidency]], [[British India]]
| residence = [[Bardhaman]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2000|5|6|1911|2|16|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Kolkata, West Bengal]]
| constituency2 = [[Bardhaman Dakshin (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman, Bardhaman South]], [[Bardhaman Uttar (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman North]]
| office2 = Member of [[West Bengal Legislative Assembly]]
| term2 = 1951-1962
| party = [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]] (1964-2000)
| preceded2 = Position Created
| succeeded2 = [[Nirupam Sen]]
| occupation = Communist Leader, Politician, Minister
| office = Minister of Land and Land Reform, [[Government of West Bengal]]
| term = 1977-1996
| office3 = Member of [[West Bengal Legislative Assembly]]
| term3 = 1969-1972
| preceded3 = Position Created
| succeeded3 = [[Nirupam Sen]]
| constituency3 = [[Bardhaman Dakshin (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman, Bardhaman South]], [[Bardhaman Uttar (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman North]]
| office4 = Member of [[West Bengal Legislative Assembly]]
| term4 = 1977-1987
| preceded4 = Position Created
| succeeded4 = [[Nirupam Sen]]
| constituency4 = [[Bardhaman Dakshin (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman, Bardhaman South]], [[Bardhaman Uttar (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman North]]
| alma_mater = [[Burdwan Municipal High School]], [[Serampore College]], [[University of Calcutta]]
}}
'''Benoy Choudhury''' (14 January 1911 – 6 May 2000) was an Indian revolutionary freedom fighter and politician, belonging to the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]] major role in land reforms in the [[India]]. He was also the Member of [[West Bengal Legislative Assembly]] for three times from Bardhaman constituency. He was the Minister of Land and [[Land reform|Land Reform]] in government of [[West Bengal]].

==Early life==
He passed matriculation from [[Burdwan Municipal High School]] and Intermediate in Science from [[Serampore College]], under the [[University of Calcutta]]. As a student at the age of thirteen, Chowdhury joined the Indian freedom movement, joining the [[Indian National Congress|Indian National Congress party]] in 1924 along with his friend [[Saroj Mukherjee]]. He joined the [[Jugantar]] group in 1928 and was in jail before he could sit for his B.A. examination.<ref name="sansad">{{cite book| author = Subodhchandra Sengupta| title = Sansad Bangali charitabhidhan| year = 1998| isbn = 978-81-85626-65-9| page = 41 }}</ref> While studying in Serampore College, he and [[Saroj Mukherjee]] became acquainted with [[Bhupendranath Datta|Dr. Bhupendranath Datta]] and Communist leaders [[Muzaffar Ahmed (politician)|Muzaffar Ahmed]] and Abdul Halim.

==Active in politics==
In 1930 he was sent to jail for his activities with [[Anushilan Samiti]]. Again in 1938 he was jailed for his involvement in Birbhum conspiracy case. He joined the Communist Party in 1938.<ref name=sansad/> filed his nomination for election from [[Bardhaman Dakshin (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Burdwan]] constituency in 1951 while still in jail. Benoy Choudhury representing undivided [[Communist Party of India|CPI]] secured 11,439 votes, [[Uday Chand Mahtab]], the erstwhile [[Bardhaman Raj|Maharaja of Burdwan]], representing [[Indian National Congress|Congress]] secured 9,477 votes. Thereafter, he went on to win the Burdwan seat in 1957, and then the [[Bardhaman Dakshin (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Burdwan South]] seat in 1969 and 1971. He won from the [[Bardhaman Uttar (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Bardhaman North]] seat in 1987 and 1991.<ref>{{cite web| url =http://eci.nic.in/archive/ElectionAnalysis/AE/S25/Partycomp271.htm | title = 271 – Burdwan South Assembly Constituency | work = Partywise Comparison Since 1977| publisher = Election Commission of India| access-date = 12 November 2010 }}</ref>

==Land reforms==
Hare Krishna Konar played a leading role in getting surplus land held by big land owners in excess of land ceiling laws and kept ‘benami’ (or false names) vested with the state. The quantum of land thus vested was around one million acres (4,000 km2) of good agricultural land. Subsequently, under the leadership of Benoy Choudhury land was distributed amongst 2.4 million landless and poor farmers. It has been argued that this land reform along with Operation Barga formed the base for the Left Front victory in subsequent elections

==Later life==
After retirement from active politics, he lived in a small rented flat in [[Bidhannagar]], trying to make a living on the spouse's pension he received from his dead wife's account. She had been the headmistress of a school. Benoy Choudhury was well known for his frank talking. On 17 December 1995, when he was the second man in the West Bengal government he remarked, "This is a government of contractors, by contractors and for contractors". After his death, one obituary note read, "A poor man he had nothing to bequeath so he gave his eyes to the eye bank and his body to Calcutta Medical College for research".<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.tribuneindia.com/2000/20000625/spectrum/main8.htm |title = He was a man of the masses |first=Chanchal|last=Sarkar| publisher =Spectrum |access-date = 12 November 2010 }}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{West Bengal Legislative Assembly3}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Choudhury, Benoy}}
[[Category:Bengali politicians]]
[[Category:Communist Party of India (Marxist) politicians from West Bengal]]
[[Category:People from Purba Bardhaman district]]
[[Category:2000 deaths]]
[[Category:University of Calcutta alumni]]
[[Category:1911 births]]

Benoy Choudhury - Revision history

->Partha protim konar at 07:15, 7 January 2022