Born to Kulamani Kar, former Assembly Speaker Sarat Kumar Kar was a prodigious child who took to his studies as a bird takes to air. Possessed with a brilliant academic record of excellence, he had his PG in Political Science from the Allahabad University in 1962. It was at this university that he came in contact with the then Allahabad MP and former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and became his blue eyed boy till he passed away in 1966. Shastri ji chided him, "If all the best brains of the country opt for IAS, who would rule this country then?" Shastriji ignited Kar to relinquish the coveted career of IAS and choose a career in politics and public life. Shastriji recommended him to Biju Patnaik. Kar met Patnaik, then a veteran Congress leader , who became enamoured of him after listening to his awe-inspiring speeches and asked him always to accompany him during his tours of the State. Kar thereafter became the Minister for Education and Culture in 1971 in the Biswanath Das Ministry. He was elected as a Janata Dal MP in 1977.
He was member of many committees including that of the External Affairs Ministry under AB Vajpayee. He was again Minister ( I&PR) under Biju Patnaik in 1990. He successfully fulfilled the task of a philosopher king when he assumed the mantle of Assembly Speaker.Kar was a precursor of many landmark judgements on the floor of the House like his glorious predecessor Pt. Nilakantha Dash. Kar had played a pivotal role while going underground, when the iron curtain of Emergency was imposed upon the country in the year 1975. Mission Black Tornado began for him. The residence at Aurangzeb Road of Biju Patnaik served as a rendezvous where in Kar had furtively invited great leaders and Parliamentarians acting at the behest of Biju Patnaik.
The sole purpose of Bijubabu was to unite the leaders of the country through Kar secretly in order to defeat the ordinance in the Parliament. Indira Gandhi then was compelled to end Emergency and declared elections after she studied the mood of the nations.
Commissioned by Bijubabu , Kar had top secret parleys with leaders like Morarji Desai, Charan Singh, AB Vajpayee, and other veterans who were asked to come to Bijubabu’s residence at Aurangzeb road and discussed with Jay Prakash Narayan by which Janata Party came into being. Kar was always being the trusted lieutenant of Bijubabu. He was always quoted saying that he was a staunch supporter of Naveen Patnaik after Bijubabu passed away. Kar joined the Congress at the call of Sonia Gandhi under some compelling circumstances. Although there was a rift in the flute between Naveen Patnaik and Kar, yet the latter's personal chemistry with Naveenbabu remained unaltered till he breathed his last.
He was not entirely lost in the heat and dust of mundane politics. As a creative writer, as a short story teller , as a poet , as a lover of culture , he had carved a niche for himself in the literary firmament of Odisha. His creations namely “Druta Bilambita,†“ Manthanâ€, “Romanthan†and “Ananya†are some of the finest pieces of poetry. Some of his short stories and articles have been translated into Hindi and English as well. For "Manthan", he had bagged the PEN Award. Besides being a poet, Kar was a mystic and philosopher who had also mastered the philosophy of Panchasakha and Siridi Sai. Our prayers are with Lord Jagannath for granting Sadgati or true path to his soul enabling it to remain in the celestial abode of eternal peace!
(The writer is a senior journalist and this is a tribute to the departed soul on the 11th Day of his obsequies)
