CPM leader Subhas Chakraborty never misses a chance to praise his mentor in politics — Jyoti Basu. For this he does not even mind using the resources of his Youth Welfare and Sports Affairs Department. On Saturday, during an official programme organised by his department, Basu was placed in the row of greats like Rabindranath Tagore, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Raja Rammohan Roy, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and J C Bose.The event was the inauguration of State Science Fair, 2008 at Netaji Indoor Stadium when a laser show documenting West Bengal presented the Marxist leader Jyoti Basu as the longest serving chief minister of the state and the senior-most Politburo member of the CPM since 1964. The audience which included former President A P J Abdul Kalam and thousands of students were told that during Basu’s tenure as chief minister, the state had made great progress. The department, however, made no mention of the pro-industry and incumbent chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. Earlier this month, when the department had organised a grand reception for legendary footballer Diego Maradona, it spared no effort in arranging a meeting between Maradona and Basu that cost the department crores of rupees.
