'Who bothers about the Left today?'
Somnath Chatterjee's bare-all book Keeping the Faith has left his former comrades seething with rage. He spoke to Principal Correspondent Shutapa Paul on his memoirs and "the saddest day in his life".
What was the experience of writing your memoir? Was it a cathartic experience?
I'm no writer by any means and I have admitted that in the book itself. I had announced in early 2008 that I was going to retire because of my health and age. Biman Bose had immediately rung me from Kolkata saying, "Somnathda, don't make such announcements that you will retire from politics." I said because of my ailing health and perfect relations between me and the party, I have decided to retire.
Somnath Chatterjee Jyoti Basu was very much alive then and he was my mentor, my leader, he was everything to me. I didn't take any action ever without consulting him or without his permission. Then many people including my staff, secretariat staff and my principal secretary were trying to impress upon me to write something saying that nobody has such experience.But I said that I had no practice of writing a book or memoir. This news went around and a lot of publishers started approaching me.
After a lot of persuasion, I felt that almost 40 years' material, speeches and major appeals have to be obtained. I felt that it wouldn't be easy to write unless you get a good back-up and a set-up for the back-up.
They have all helped me and I have acknowledged them in my book. I started writing in early 2009 but it was very slow because I could hardly afford much time. I didn't have a ghostwriter or a drafts person.
Ninety five per cent of the book was completed in Delhi and I added some chapters such as "My Colleagues and Comrades" and "Rubbing Shoulders with Stalwarts" in Kolkata.
This is not my autobiography. My first chapter is on how I came into politics. During my student days, I didn't dabble in politics. My political career started with Parliament in the sense. My first election was as an independent supported by CPI(M).
Although I took their symbol, I wasn't a member then. The party membership came during my first term. I didn't go through the grind in a way but that was a great moment in my life. Therefore, I felt very sad when I was expelled, to cut off such a long connection almost unceremoniously. It still hurts me and I have to live with that.
