->SdkbBot at 20:06, 4 January 2022

2022-01-04T20:06:47Z

New page

{{Short description|Indian politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Kamal Kanti Guha
| image =
| birth_date September = 25/1928
|birth_place = Dhaka Bangladesh], Education:Bachelor with honors Presidency College kokolka india
| death_date = 6 August 2007 (aged 79)
|death_place = [[Cooch Behar]], [[West Bengal]], India
| office1 = [[Member of Legislative Assembly (India)|MLA]]
| term_start1 = 1962-1969
| term_end1 = 1977-2006
| predecessor1 =
| successor1 =
| constituency1 = [[Dinhata (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Dinhata]]
| office = [[Minister (government)|Minister for Agriculture,<br/> Agriculture Marketing & Public Health Engineering]]
| term_start = 1977
| term_end = 2006
| nationality = [[India]]n
| spouse =
| party = [[All India Forward Bloc]]<br/>[[Forward Bloc (Socialist)]] (1996–1999)
| residence =
| alma_mater = [[University of Calcutta]]
| profession = Politician, [[social worker]]
| website =
| footnotes =
}}

'''Kamal Guha''' (1928–2007) was an Indian politician. He was an [[All India Forward Bloc]] leader and member of the [[Left Front (West Bengal)|Left Front]] cabinet in the Indian state of [[West Bengal]] for over two decades.<ref name="Statesman">{{cite web|url=http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=6&id=165424&usrsess=1|title=Death of a rare visionary|access-date=2007-08-08|newspaper=The Statesman|date=7 August 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929090436/http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=6&id=165424&usrsess=1|archive-date=29 September 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Early life==
Kamal Guha was born at [[Dinhata]] on 20 January 1928. He graduated from [[Dinhata High School]], and passed Intermediate Arts from Victoria College (now [[Acharya Brojendra Nath Seal College]]) in Cooch Behar, which was then affiliated with the [[University of Calcutta]].<ref name= "Hindu">{{cite web | url = http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/004200708062071.htm | title = Kamal Guha dies | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | newspaper = The Hindu | date = 7 August 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071025083512/http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/004200708062071.htm | archive-date = 25 October 2007 | url-status = usurped }}</ref> Guha was inspired by [[Subhas Chandra Bose]] at a very young age. He decided to join the Forward Bloc when he was still a student.<ref name= "Statesman"/>

==Political career==
Guha was first elected to the [[Dinhata (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Dinhata seat]] of the [[West Bengal Legislative Assembly]] in the [[1962 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]]. He was re-elected to this seat in [[1967 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1967]], but lost in [[1969 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1969]]. He was re-elected in [[1977 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1977]], holding the seat through the [[1982 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1982]], [[1987 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1987]], [[1991 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1991]], [[1996 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|1996]], and [[2001 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|2001]] elections.<ref name= "Statesman"/><ref name= "Hindu"/> In 1977, 1982, 1987, and 2001 he was a cabinet member. His various portfolios included agriculture, agriculture marketing and public health engineering.<ref name= "Statesman"/> He chose not to run for re-election in the [[2006 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election|2006 election]].<ref name="Hindu" />

Guha was a driving force behind the expansion of the Forward Bloc party in West Bengal. In the late 1980s, he took up the cause of people living the [[India–Bangladesh enclaves]]. In 1992, he was expelled by his party because of disagreements over handing over the [[Tin Bigha Corridor|Tin Bigha corridor]] to [[Bangladesh]]. He formed a splinter party, [[Forward Bloc (Socialist)]], and won the 1996 election against the official Left Front candidate. He returned to the Forward Bloc for the 2001 election.<ref name= "Statesman"/>

Guha was seen as an anti-[[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]] (CPI(M)) voice within the Left Front. He was firmly against the [[Government of West Bengal|state government's]] market-driven farm policy.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070807/asp/bengal/story_8160530.asp | title = Kamal Guha dead | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | newspaper = The Telegraph | date= 7 August 2008}}</ref> In 2002, he stated publicly that he felt that "indiscriminate recruitment of CPI(M) cadres by government departments and frequent increase in their salary has made the West Bengal government bankrupt."<ref>{{cite news | url = http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2002-10-31/kolkata/27322871_1_cpm-cadres-kamal-guha-financial-crisis
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121017211838/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2002-10-31/kolkata/27322871_1_cpm-cadres-kamal-guha-financial-crisis
| url-status = dead
| archive-date = 17 October 2012
| title = Kamal Guha casts one more stone at CPM | accessdate = 2007-08-08 | newspaper = [[The Times of India]]
| date=31 October 2002}}</ref>

Guha died on 6 August 2007.<ref name= "Hindu"/> In a memorial, Forward Bloc leader [[Debabrata Biswas (politician)|Debabrata Biswas]] said that Guha was a "leader of the people and always fought for the rights of the toiling masses."<ref name= "Statesman"/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

{{West Bengal Legislative Assembly1}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guha, Kamal}}
[[Category:Bengali politicians|Guha, Kamal]]
[[Category:All India Forward Bloc politicians|Guha, Kamal]]
[[Category:People from Cooch Behar district|Guha, Kamal]]
[[Category:1928 births|Guha, Kamal]]
[[Category:2007 deaths|Guha, Kamal]]
[[Category:University of Calcutta alumni|Guha, Kamal]]
[[Category:State cabinet ministers of West Bengal|Guha, Kamal]]

Kamal Guha - Revision history

->SdkbBot at 20:06, 4 January 2022