Sitaram Yechury's body to be donated to AIIMS for research

Following a prolonged illness, Yechury died at the age of 72. The senior politician had been seriously ill for several days after being admitted to AIIMS New Delhi on August 19 for treatment of an acute respiratory tract infection, which resembled pneumonia.

He had been on ventilator support and under treatment by a multidisciplinary team of doctors for the past few days and his condition was considered critical, according to CPI(M) leaders.

Politicians from all parties expressed their sorrow at the news, prompting protests.

His family has donated his body to AIIMS in New Delhi for teaching and research purposes. His body will be handed over to the hospital on Saturday.

Yechury's body will be shifted from AIIMS to his home in Delhi on Friday, where he will remain overnight. On Saturday morning, his body will be taken to the CPI(M) central committee office for public viewing. Later that evening, AIIMS will receive his body.

Early life:

On 12 August 1952, in Chennai, Sitaram Yechury was born into a Telugu-speaking Brahmin family. He spent his early years in Hyderabad, where he attended All Saints High School and completed his education. He moved to Delhi in 1969 as a result of the disruption of academic life by the Telangana separatist movement. Yechury completed his higher secondary education from the President's Estate School in Delhi, securing first rank in the All-India CBSE examination. He then pursued a B.A. (Honours) degree in Economics from St. Stephen's College, University of Delhi, where he graduated with a first class. Yechury later graduated from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Economics.

Political career:

While attending JNU in 1974, Yechury began his political career as an activist of the Students Federation of India (SFI). In 1975, he became a member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Yechury went underground and was arrested for organizing resistance during the 1975–77 state of emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi. Between 1977 and 1978, he was elected three times to serve as the president of the JNU Students' Union after the lifting of the state of emergency.

In 1984, Yechury and Prakash Karat were inducted into the CPI(M) Central Committee. In 1992, he became a member of the CPI(M) Politburo. Yechury learnt the ropes of the party by working closely with veteran leaders like EMS Namboodiripad and Harkishan Singh Surjeet. He was elected to the Central Secretariat in 1988, the Politburo in 1992 and the CPI(M) Congress in 1985.

On 19 April 2015, Yechury was elected as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). He held this post until his death in 2024. Under his leadership, the party managed to remain true to its ideological principles while adapting to the changing political environment, bridging the gap between pragmatism and dogmatism.