A heartfelt tribute to Sukhajyoti Sinha

Rebati Mohan Sinha

Late Sukhajyoti was such a kind person, who will be greatly missed by our Bishnupriya Manipuri community. I will personally miss her helpful advice on social work. Death is a tragic time for the surviving family members and friends and offering the right words of comfort can go a long way to helping them heal. I know, how much grief a mother’s death causes. They have lost their mother and that void can never be filled.

An era will end along with the year this auspicious December 25 (Christmas)when the much loved and revered family bids farewell to Sukhajyoti, on her last rite(Shradda), marked by exceptional leadership and social work. That is the legacy of the 86-year- old social worker, whom many might remember as the familiar figure walking through the crowd in her usual habit. In this year, age had forced her to be away from public life but her aura had not dimmed.

She retired as State Social Education Officer and ever after she had been a source of inspiration for every one whose life she has touched in some way or other. She had always been a leader. She had always worked for the upliftment of the Bishnupriya Manipuris in general and women in particular.

My first meeting with the Sukhajyoti masee was in the year 2003 in World Conference of Nikhil Bishnupriya Manipuri Mahasabha held at Sadhu Thakur Ashram at Tarapur, Silchar. Both masee and myself were invited as presidents and happened to be seated together on the dais and could exchange our views. Later years quite often we shared the dais where ever we were invited. Once it so happened when I was invited in Sri Sri Radhamadhavjiu Mandir Parichalan Samiti’s Kendriya Adhiveshan at Maligaon Malthep, Guwahati to attend the 3 days’ session and no one from reception committee had shown any courtesy to welcome me at the venue, hearing that she became furious and had a good word with authority and when she came to know that Anchalik Committee was adamant in their decision, she immediately asked Guwahati Woman Organisation to make arrangement for my felicitation on the same venue.

My last meeting with her was in March in Kolkata this year at her younger brother, Capt. Radha Kishore Sinha’s last rite (shradda). He was a Captain in Merchant Navy. Then I had talked to her from her youngest sister’s house at New Delhi in the month of September. Although I was in Guwahati in November; but I could not meet her at hospital due to my sudden departure for Kolkata.