Veteran BJP leader and former Union Minister Kabindra Purkayastha dies at 95

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and one of the most influential architects of the party’s growth in Assam, Kabindra Purkayastha, passed away on Wednesday, January 7 evening at around 5 pm at Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH), where he had been undergoing treatment. His demise marks the end of a defining chapter in Assam’s political history and leaves a void in the BJP’s organisational and ideological leadership in the Northeast.

Widely regarded as the patriarch of the Assam BJP, Purkayastha was admired across party lines for his simplicity, intellectual depth, and unwavering discipline in public life. Before stepping into active politics, he served as a teacher—a vocation that deeply shaped his thoughtful, principled, and measured approach to leadership and governance.

Purkayastha played a decisive role in laying and strengthening the organisational foundations of the BJP in Assam at a time when the party was still emerging in the state. His strategic clarity and ideological commitment helped expand the party’s reach and influence, particularly in Barak Valley and other key regions.

At the national level, he went on to serve as the Union Minister of Communications in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government. During his tenure, he earned widespread respect for his administrative integrity, sense of responsibility, and dedication to public service.

News of his passing triggered an outpouring of grief across the political spectrum. Soon after his demise, senior political leaders, BJP functionaries, and supporters gathered at Silchar Medical College to pay their final respects to the veteran leader.

Condolence messages and tributes have been pouring in from across Assam and various parts of the country, remembering Kabindra Purkayastha as a mentor, an ideologue, and a towering statesman who shaped generations of political workers. His passing is being widely seen as the end of an era in Assam BJP politics, one defined by ideological conviction, organisational discipline, and quiet statesmanship.