Chandan Mitra, former Rajya Sabha MP and journalist, passes away

Former Rajya Sabha MP and senior journalist Chandan Mitra passed away on Wednesday night in Delhi, said his son Kushan Mitra.

"Dad passed away late last night. He had been suffering for a while," Kushan Mitra tweeted on Thursday morning. Mitra is survived by his wife and two sons.

Chandan Mitra was a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha from August 2003 to 2009. In June 2010, the BJP got him elected to Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh. His term ended in 2016. In 2018, he joined the Trinamool Congress.

Chandan Mitra, considered to be close to BJP veteran L K Advani, was the editor and managing director of The Pioneer.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Chandan Mitra would be remembered for his "intellect and insights".

"Shri Chandan Mitra Ji will be remembered for his intellect and insights. He distinguished himself in the world of media as well as politics. Anguished by his demise. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti," PM Modi tweeted.

I am posting a photograph of Chandan Mitra and me together during a school trip in 1972. Be happy my dear friend wherever you are. Om Shanti pic.twitter.com/58vMvU6Wa9 — Swapan Dasgupta (@swapan55) September 2, 2021

Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta said he lost his closest friend and posted a photo from a school trip in 1972.

"I lost my closest friend — editor of Pioneer & former MP Chandan Mitra — this morning. We were together as students of La Martiniere & went on to St Stephen’s & Oxford. We joined journalism at the same time & shared the excitement of Ayodhya & the saffron wave," Swapan Dasgupta tweeted.