“Jyoti Basu brought farmers and workers to the centrestage of not only Bengal politics, but national politics. Today he is no more. We will go ahead with his experience and ideals and will approach the masses with his message,” said the chief minister, while addressing the gathering at Shahid Minar grounds.

Sharing the platform with party general secretary Prakash Karat, politburo member Sitaram Yechuri and party state secretary Biman Bose, the chief minister highlighted Basu’s tolerance citing that one of the first decisions he took as chief minister in 1977 was to grant general amnesty to all political prisoners.

“He was jailed himself. Yet his first decision as chief minister was to free all political prisoners belonging to the Left, ultra Left or the Congress. The media has at times unduly criticised him, but he never raised the issue against them (media),” said Bhattacharjee. According to party sources, a battered CPM is all set to use Jyoti Basu’s memories to revive its lost base in rural Bengal. The party has taken up the initiative to compile Basu’s speeches into audio and audio-visual forms that will be used as part of the mass campaign in various districts.

“We are compiling his speeches in CDs and VCDs. They will be played in the districts to spread Basu’s message to the masses. Even after his death, he is not irrelevant as he commands a mass appeal,” said a senior CPM leader.

As Trinamool Congress remained absent, its two allies, Congress and SUCI, shared the dais to remember Basu.

“Pranab Mukherjee was supposed to attend the meeting. Since he is busy with the preparations for the Budget, I have come here on behalf of the party to pay tributes to Basu,” said West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) working president Subrata Mukherjee.

The SUCI, which won a Lok Sabha seat with Trinamool’s support, was also not convinced with Mamata’s decision to skip Basu’s last journey a few days ago.

“In our days of student life when we organised movements, Jyoti Basu was the leader of the undivided Communist party. Even though Biman Bose, CPM state secretary, is junior to me, we had jointly organised movements in the past and were in the second United Front government along with the CPM,” SUCI state secretary Provas Ghosh said at the meet.

Leaders from the Bahujan Samaj Party, CPI ML (Liberation) and the Party for Democratic Socialism were also present at the meet.

Also, leaders from various political parties of Bangladesh — Bangladesh Communist Party, Bangladesh Workers Party and Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, and Nepal’s Communist Party of Nepal (UML) joined in to remember Basu.