Mukul Roy dies at 71: His journey from Trinamool's backroom brain to BJP strategist

FSea-ear railroad line government minister Mukul Roy died in calcutta in the betimes hours of Monday, his son confirmed to news agency ANI. He was 71. Roy suffered a cardiac arrest and passed away around 1:30 am at Apollo Hospital in Salt Lake, his son Shuvrangshu Roy said.Once regarded as one of the most influential strategists in the All India Trinamool Congress, Roy's political journey spanned decades of shifting allegiances, high office and legal battles.Rise in Trinamool CongressA close aide of Mamata Banerjee, Mukul Roy was considered the second-most powerful leader in the party during its formative years. As a key organisational strategist, he played a crucial role in the Trinamool Congress's historic 2011 Assembly election victory that ended 34 years of Left Front rule in West Bengal.In 2012, he briefly served as the Union railway minister in the UPA-II government, led by then prime minister Manmohan Singh. He took the post from Dinesh Trivedi after a controversy over railway fare hikes. His tenure lasted from March to September that year.However his influence within the Trinamool Congress declined after the Narada sting operation controversy. He was expelled from the party in 2017.Switch to BJP and returnSome time later, Mukul Roy joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and rose to become its national vice-president in 2020.He was instrumental in shaping the BJP's West Bengal campaign strategy and contested the 2021 Assembly elections as a BJP candidate.Following the election results, Roy returned to the Trinamool Congress in August 2021 in the presence of Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee. His return, however, triggered disqualification proceedings under the anti-defection law.In January this year, the Supreme Court of India stayed a Calcutta High Court order that had disqualified him as an MLA.A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant observed that electronic evidence alleging defection required proper scrutiny and could not be accepted merely on “preponderance of probability”.Health struggles and final yearsIn recent years, Mukul Roy had largely withdrawn from active politics as his health deteriorated. Doctors confirmed in early 2023 that he had been battling dementia and Parkinson’s disease.In March 2023, he underwent brain surgery for hydrocephalus. His condition worsened in July 2024 after a fall at his residence led to a head injury and surgery to remove a blood clot.He also suffered from chronic diabetes, respiratory distress and persistently high blood sugar levels, with associates describing his health as increasingly fragile.