OBITUARY: Sitaram Yechury – A Rich Life Cut Short

In a life that ended too early, Sitaram Yechury’s contribution to the post Emergency transformation of the Left, and, in the process, to the discourse and practice of politics in India was immense.
Graduating from student to party politics, Shaving experienced and learnt the lessons on the need to protect democracy that the Emergency years imparted, Sitaram (or ‘Sita’ as he was known among friends) was quickly absorbed into the discussions on the strategy and tactics of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Left, in an environment that had seen the erosion of single party dominance.