SOMNATH CHATTERJEE

Born in Tezpur, Assam, in 1929, Somnath Chatterjee was educated at the Presidency College in Calcutta, at Jesus College in Cambridge, and at the Middle Temple. Chatterjee began his career as a lawyer and joined active politics in 1971, when he was elected to the Lok Sabha. He continued to remain an MP till he stepped down from active politics in 2009. In his long and illustrious career as an MP, Somnath Chatterjee adorned several parliamentary committees as chairman and as member. He served with distinction as Chairman, Committee on Subordinate Legislation and Standing Committee on Information Technology, Committee of Privileges, Committee on Railways, and Committee on Communications. He has been a member of the Rules Committee, General Purposes Committee, Business Advisory Committee and the Ethics Committee, to name a few. As a barrister and as a senior lawyer, he brought his legal acumen to the sphere of legislation, both in the House and its committees. In 1996, he was conferred the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award by the Indian Parliamentary Group. In 2004, he was unanimously elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha. His conduct of the proceedings of the House evoked widespread appreciation from a cross section of citizens from India and overseas. He now lives near Santiniketan.