The CPI(M), which had earlier buried its political hatchet with Kanu Sanyal, today condoled the death of one of the founders of the Naxalite movement, terming it as "very unfortunate".
The party's Polit Bureau member, Sitaram Yechury, said Sanyal had been critical of the line adopted by Maoists for quite some time.
"His death is very unfortunate. Off late, particularly after Nandigram and Lalgarh, he has been saying that the line adopted by Maoists do not conform to the revolutionary understanding (which was adopted) at the time when they had started the Naxalite movement" in late 1960s, Yechury said.
Sanyal, along with Charu Mazumdar and Jangal Santhal had launched a militant peasant movement from the Naxalbari village in the same district in 1969 after splitting from the CPI(M) and forming the CPI(ML).
Yechury said Sanyal had been participating in all major agitations and programmes called by the CPI(M)-led Left Front in Bengal against imperialism and other issues.
Sanyal is suspected to have committed suicide as his body was found hanging at his residence at Seftullajote village, 25 km from Siliguri in West Bengal.
