Comrade Bishnu Mohanty, all-India vice-president of CITU, passed away at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar on May 9. He was 75. He had been suffering from pneumonia and acute diabetic, and was admitted to the hospital on April 23.

Mohanty was a firebrand student leader in his school and college days in Rourkela. During his student days, he led a movement for a rail link from Talcher to Bimalagarh and for a second steel plant in 1970. He led the 1969 historic student movement in Rourkela. He was the first MISA detenu in Odisha in 1972. Then again he was arrested under MISA during the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi government. He was the vice-president of the SFI Odisha unit during that period. He was mercilessly beaten by the Congress-backed anti-social elements. He led many democratic movements and had the magnetic power to attract young students.

Mohanty grew up in the working class areas of Rourkela and was attracted towards the cause of poor people. It has a deep impact on him. He was the president of the college student union during his undergraduate period and also while studying LLB. After his release from jail in 1977, he took up workers’ issues, by that time he was a member of the CPI(M). He joined the party in 1972. Mohanty emerged as one of the tallest trade union leaders of Odisha. He was president of over dozens of unions throughout the state. He became leader of Rourkela Steel Plant workers and of Steel Workers’ Federation of India (SWFI). He had also organised iron ore mines workers in Koida, limestone workers of Purunapani, cement workers of Rajgangpur cement belt, aluminium workers of Angul and Damanjodi, power plant workers of Talcher, paper mill workers of Rayagada JK Paper Mill, electricity employees of western Odisha, Paradeep fertilizer workers and Rourkela fertilizer workers. He was also the leader of ASHA, anganwadi, mid-day meal, and construction workers. 

He became the general secretary of CITU Odisha state committee in 2000, and continued in the post till his death. Mohanty played an important role in protecting Sikhs in Rourkela during anti-Sikh riots in 1984, He led a volunteer team to protect Sikh families in Rourkela. He also led a volunteer group to protect Muslim minorities during anti-Muslim riots. He was a prolific orator and a real mass leader. 

Mohanty’s demise is a big loss for the trade union movement and for the Party as well as the larger Left movement.

CPI(M) pays tribute

The Odisha state committee of the CPI(M) paid tribute to Mohanty, who was a member of the state secretariat. The CPI(M) Odisha state committee paid its profound homage to his memory and decided to keep the Party flag at half-mast across the state for three days.

In a statement, CPI(M) Odisha state secretary Suresh Chandra Panigrahy said Mohanty possessed exceptional knowledge of labour laws and effectively represented workers in numerous bilateral and tripartite negotiations, securing justice for them.

Through his efforts, CITU-led trade unions were built in Rajgangpur, Kalunga, Biramitrapur, Purunapani and other industrial areas. He also took initiatives to build CITU in Angul, Damanjodi, Sambalpur and Paradip. Apart from the Party and trade union work, he had no other pursuit in life. Though he obtained a law degree, instead of practicing regularly as a lawyer, he fought in courts and tribunals for the protection of workers. He also conducted educational camps on labour laws for the trade union movement. His passing is a deep loss to CPI(M), CITU, and the workers’ movement. The Party pays its Red Salute to his memory and expresses heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family (END)