Srinagar: Veteran trade union leader and Kashmiri Pandit Sampat Prakash died due to cardiac arrest on Saturday, his close friends said.
The elderly trade union leader was brought dead to SKIMS Srinagar.
“Just got a call about the demise of Veteran trade leader Mr Sampat Prakash!,” wrote former President of Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Sheikh Ashiq on Twitter.
Sampat has been instrumental in shaping the trade union activism in Kashmir and went to jail for that.
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and CPI(M) leader M Y Tarigami condoled the death.
“Very sorry to hear about the sudden demise of veteran trade leader & an advocate of civil liberties Sampat Prakash ji. As a child, I remember him being a frequent visitor at KD Sethi sahab’s house in Jammu. Deepest condolences to his family,” the PDP President wrote on twitter.
Tarigami said he made an immense contribution to the trade union movement.
Sampat was in the front row of leaders who organised the 1967 general strike of employees along with Abdul Majeed Khan, Shishopal and others.
He remained steadfast to the cause of working class and lowly paid employees.
“On June 9, I visited him to enquire about the health of his wife and exchanged views over a host of issues. He was very concerned about the welfare of people,” Tarigami said.
“He will always be remembered for his dedication and unwavering commitment to the cause of exploited and excluded. His death has created an eternal void,” he added.
UNI
