Church Leaders Pay Homage to Marxist Leader

KOLKATA, Jan. 20, 2010, 17.00 Hrs (CBCI News):

Cardinal Telesphore Toppo of Ranchi, former president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India along with Salesian Archbishop Lucas Sircar of Kolkata led a 25 member Catholic delegation to pay homage to the mortal remains of Shri Jyoti Basu. The veteran Marxist leader Shri Basu was West Bengal chief minister for 23 years (June 21, 1977 to November 6, 2000) and straddled Indian politics for over six decades. He died in a Kolkata hospital on Sunday (17 January) after a prolonged illness. He was 95.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) expresses its heartfelt condolences at the demise of Shri Jyoti Basu. The apex body of the Catholic Church along with the nation pays its rich tribute to the great humanitarian who dedicated his entire life for the service of people in the West Bengal and in the country.

Bishop Franco Mulakkal, the auxiliary Bishop of the Delhi Catholic Archdiocese along with the spokesperson Fr. Dominic Emmanuel offered their condolences to Mr. Sitaram Yetchury on behalf of the Archbishop of Delhi, Archbishop Vincent M. Concessao and the Catholic Community in Delhi on the sad demise of Mr. Jyoti Basu.