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{{Short description|Communist Indian Politician}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Dipak Sarkar
| image = Dipak Sarkar.jpg
| caption = CPI(M) Leader Dipak Sarkar
| birth_date = 1940
| birth_place = [[Midnapore]], [[West Bengal]]
| death_date = October 13, 2025
| death_place = Midnapore, West Bengal
| citizenship = Indian
| party = [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]]
}}


'''Dipak Sarkar''' (1940 – October 13, 2025) was a veteran Indian trade unionist and Communist leader from [[Midnapore]], [[West Bengal]] who served as a member of the All India Working Committee of the [[Centre of Indian Trade Unions]] and the State Secretariat of the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Sen |first=Tapan |date=October 13, 2025 |title=Red Salute to Comrade Dipak Sarkar |url=https://www.citucentre.org/917-red-salute-to-comrade-dipak-sarkar |url-status=live |website=[[Centre of Indian Trade Unions]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Communist Party Of India (Marxist) |url=https://cpim.org/new-state-secretariat-constituted-west-bengal/ |access-date=2025-11-15 |language=en}}</ref>

A professor of politics at the [[Midnapore College]], Sarkar became the District Secretary of undivided [[Midnapore]] in 1992 and was an instrumental figure in leading the counter-insurgency against [[Naxalite–Maoist insurgency]] in the [[Jungle Mahals|Junglemahal]] region.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-11-04 |title=Return to sanity |url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/other/article30182313.ece |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=Frontline |language=en}}</ref> Under his leadership, the Communist government under [[Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee]] wrested [[Lalgarh, Jhargram|Lalgarh]] from Maoists as part of the [[Operation Lalgarh]] in 2009.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gupta |first=Shekhar |date=2011-05-12 |title=From Soviet Union in Alimuddin Street to a watch repair shop in Singur |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/from-soviet-union-in-alimuddin-street-to-a-watch-repair-shop-in-singur/ |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Sarkar was born in 1940 in [[Midnapore]], [[West Bengal]], and joined the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]] in the 1960s.<ref name=":0" /> He died at his residence in Biddhannagar, Midnapore, on October 13, 2025, at the age of 85.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=October 14, 2025 |title=প্রয়াত অবিভক্ত মেদিনীপুরের সিপিএমের প্রাক্তন জেলা সম্পাদক দীপক সরকার, ‘অন্তিমযাত্রা’ সমাপ্ত হবে দেহদানের মধ্য দিয়ে |url=https://www.anandabazar.com/west-bengal/midnapore/veteran-left-leader-deepak-sarkar-passed-away-dgtl/cid/1639908 |work=[[Anandabazar Patrika]]}}</ref> Sarkar's body was donated to the [[Midnapore Medical College and Hospital|Midnapore Medical College]], an institution he had helped establish during his political career.<ref>{{Cite web |title=তাঁর উদ্যোগে শুরু মেদিনীপুর মেডিক্যাল কলেজ তৈরির কাজ, সেখানেই দান বাম নেতা দীপক সরকারের দেহ |url=https://www.sangbadpratidin.in/bengal/body-of-left-leader-dipak-sarkar-donated-to-midnapore-medical-college/ |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=sangbadpratidin |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[Mohammed Salim (politician)|Mohammed Salim]], [[Susanta Ghosh]], and [[Surjya Kanta Mishra]] were among his contemporaries who attended his final ceremony, which also included leaders from the [[Trinamool Congress]] and the Bengal [[Bharatiya Janata Party – West Bengal|Bharatiya Janata Party]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 15, 2025 |title=বিতর্কিত অতীত, মেঠো লড়াইয়ের দীপক নিভল |url=https://www.anandabazar.com/west-bengal/veteran-cpm-leader-dipak-sarkars-body-handed-over-to-medical-college-prnt/cid/1640163? |url-status=live |work=[[Anandabazar Patrika]]}}</ref>

== Career and Controversies ==

In his political career, Sarkar was instrumental in the establishment of the [[Midnapore Medical College and Hospital|Midnapore Medical College]], Sports Development Authority, the [[Vidyasagar Institute of Health]], and other institutions in and around the [[Midnapore|Midnapore district]].<ref name=":1" /> Until his death, he remained the chairman of the governing body of the [[Vidyasagar Institute of Health]] and was one of the patrons of the [[Vidyasagar Shishu Niketan]], the first local school affiliated with [[Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chairman Desk |url=https://vihmid.org.in/the-president-of-the-govorning-body-chairman/ |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=Vidyasagar Institute of Health |language=en-US}}</ref>
[[File:Dipak Sarkar at CPI(M) Rally.jpg|thumb|Sarkar, seen here with [[Biman Bose]] and [[Surjya Kanta Mishra]]]]
Sarkar retired from the State Secretariat in 2022 and continued as an advisor.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=2018-03-09 |title=CPM’s Bengal old guard passes on party baton |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/cpms-bengal-old-guard-passes-on-party-baton/articleshow/63226508.cms? |access-date=2025-11-15 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> He was seen as a political patron for the controversial Bengal minister [[Susanta Ghosh]], when Sarkar confronted [[Anil Biswas (politician)|Anil Biswas]] regarding the inclusion of Ghosh in the secretariat.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sengupta |first=Anindya |date=August 12, 2011 |title=CPM's love-hate relationship with Sushanta |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/cpm-s-love-hate-relationship-with-sushanta/cid/364613 |url-status=live |access-date=November 15, 2025 |work=[[The Telegraph (India)]]}}</ref> Considered one of the most powerful political figures in Bengal, Sarkar was frequently targeted by Naxal leaders like [[Kishenji]] who named him alongside [[Lakshman Chandra Seth|Lakshman Seth]] MP and Anuj Pandey as targets of the insurgents.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2009-04-27 |title=Trinamool armed us to fight in Nandigram: Naxal leader |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/trinamool-armed-us-to-fight-in-nandigram-naxal-leader/articleshow/4452548.cms |access-date=2025-11-15 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref>

In 2010, during the Maoist resistance to a steel plant project by the [[Jindal Steel]] conglomerate in West Midnapore's [[Salboni]] region, Sarkar helped organise the ''Harmath'' militia to counter the insurgents.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Burke |first=Jason |date=2010-03-21 |title=West Bengal villagers pay with blood for a steel plant |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/mar/21/west-bengal-steel-plant-murders-india |access-date=2025-11-17 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Later, after the [[Minister of Home Affairs (India)|Home Minister of India]] [[P. Chidambaram]] wrote to Chief Minister [[Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee]] about the internal security of the Lalgarh region, Sarkar worked as an advisor with state cabinet Minister [[Susanta Ghosh]] and established the ''Harmath'' defence squads in Jungle mahal areas recovered by the Communist government from Maoist insurgents.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mondal |first=Pronab |date=January 1, 2011 |title=Rebel pill on rebels |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/rebel-pill-on-rebels/cid/445820 |url-status=live |website=[[The Telegraph (India)]]}}</ref>

In 2016, Chief Minister [[Mamata Banerjee]] accused Sarkar, alongside Politburo member [[Surjya Kanta Mishra]], [[Mohammed Salim (politician)|Mohammed Salim]], and [[Susanta Ghosh]] of mudering democracy for demanding Central Force and electoral observers during the [[2016 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bureau |first=M. Post |date=2016-04-09 |title=Mamata accuses CPI(M) of murdering democracy |url=https://www.millenniumpost.in/mamata-accuses-cpim-of-murdering-democracy-135818 |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=www.millenniumpost.in |language=en}}</ref> He was also named and later acquitted in the [[Nandigram violence]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=August 24, 2011 |title=Nandigram murder heat on Lakshman |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/nandigram-murder-heat-on-lakshman/cid/364846 |url-status=live |work=[[The Telegraph (India)]]}}</ref>

== References ==

{{reflist}}

{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarkar, Dipak}}
[[Category:1940 births]]
[[Category:2025 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Midnapore]]
[[Category:Politicians from West Bengal]]
[[Category:Communist Party of India (Marxist) politicians]]

Dipak Sarkar - Revision history

Peter120: created new info.