Arun Kumar Roy, fondly remembered as AK Roy, passed away in Dhanbad at 90 after a brief illness on 27th July 2019. He was one of the highly respected stalwarts and pillars of the content driven politics of the left- movement in contemporary India.
Born at Sapura village of Rajshahi district in 1928, Roy came from a politically conscious Bengali Brahmin family. His both mother and father had served time in prison for their pro-active participation in freedom movement against the British government.
Roy was basically a migrant from East Pakistan [erstwhile East Bengal]. He obtained his Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Calcutta University with flying colours in 1959. After doing some job in Calcutta for two years, he joined newly established Projects and Development India Limited [PDIL] at Sindri, Dhanbad, as a Research Engineer in 1961. On August 9 ,1966 he actively participated in workers’ agitation against the-then government in Sindri and was arrested and sent to jail; the PDIL management dismissed him from job. He then wholeheartedly embraced the trade unionism and became a whole timer of union work for the rest of his life. Roy aggressively fought against the highhandedness of private colliery owners in Sindri and its adjoining areas. His personal integrity made him popular among workers in the area. So much so that the history-sheeters and coal-mafia of Dhanbad, who had unholy alliances with political bigwigs, never dared to come in his way. Those dreaded men simply dreaded this down-to-earth, simple and humane person.
Despite being three-time member of Bihar Legislative Assembly [MLA] and three-time Lok Sabha M.P from Dhanbad, he had a zero-balance bank account and had no landed, or otherwise, property in his name. He was often called a political saint by his followers and associates. During his last Lok Sabha tenure [1989 – 1991] he vehemently opposed a proposal in Parliament to increase the admissible salary and pension for MPs. He staged a walkout while all other lawmakers irrespective of their party line were on the same page to extract more perks and privileges from the country’s exchequer.
He was an uncompromising and fearless fighter of social justice. He always stood for national unity and communal harmony. He was a grassroots worker and a man of action. He will be remembered for his honesty, integrity and social commitments.