Dhaka, Sept 4 (bdnews24.com)—Renowned singer Ajit Roy, who had inspired freedom fighters during the 1971 independence war through Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra, has died.
The 73-year-old singer was on life support at the BIRDEM Hospital.
Confirming his death from lungs failure around 1pm on Sunday, intensive care unit (ICU) chief professor Mohammad Omar Faruq said, "His life support system has been detached."
Daughter Shreyoshi Roy told bdnews24.com that her father had been admitted to the hospital on Aug 26 after he had developed pneumonia. "He was also suffering from high blood pressure."
Cultural personalities and activists rushed to the hospital hearing the news.
Actor Ramendu Majumder said, "The remains of Roy will be kept in the mortuary for the night."
"On Monday, the body will be taken to the Central Shaheed Minar. Everyone will be able to pay their last respects to him from 10:30am to 12pm," he added.
The place and time of his cremation will be decided by his family, he added.
President Zillur Rahman and prime minister Sheikh Hasina condoled the death of Roy.
Born on June 29 in 1938 in Rangpur, Roy in 1963 became a famous exponent of Tagore songs on radio and television.
He joined Bangladesh Betar in 1972 after the Liberation War and retired in 1995.
Roy was awarded Swadhinata Padak in 2000 for his contribution during the birth of Bangladesh through a nine-month bloody war against Pakistan.
He was one of the major contributors in flourishing the Gano Sangeet genre, especially during the war and the mass revolution of 1969.
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