Former Mohun Bagan president Tutu Bose passes away at 78 after heart attack

Swapan Sadhan Bose, widely known as Tutu Bose in Indian football circles, passed away late on Tuesday night. He was 78. The veteran sports administrator suffered a heart attack on Monday evening and was admitted to a private hospital in south Kolkata, where he was kept on ventilator support.

On Tuesday, Union Minister of State for Sports Nisith Pramanik visited the hospital to enquire about his condition. All India Football Federation president Kalyan Chaubey was also present. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had also checked on his health.

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Condoling his death, CM Adhikari wrote in a post on X, "Mohun Bagan Club and Tutu Basu were complementary to each other. His extraordinary contributions to sports administration over many years will remain eternally memorable."

A long association with Mohun Bagan

Tutu Bose shared a decades-long relationship with Mohun Bagan Super Giant and remained one of the most influential figures in the club's administration. He served as the club secretary from 1991 to 1995 before taking over as president. In 2018, he returned as secretary for another two-year term and later served two more terms as president between 2020-22 and 2022-2025.

Several landmark decisions were taken during his tenure. He was also responsible for bringing in Nigerian striker Chima Okorie, who became Mohun Bagan's first foreign footballer. The signing marked a major shift in the club's football culture at the time.

Beyond football administration

Apart from football administration, Tutu Bose had multiple roles in public life. He served as a Rajya Sabha MP from the All India Trinamool Congress. He was also known as a businessman and newspaper owner.

He was associated with cargo-handling and port operations through Ripley & Company and later expanded into media ventures, including radio businesses in Dubai.

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Though he had stepped away from active football administration, Mohun Bagan supporters continued to regard him as one of the club's guardians.

Last year, he was honoured with the 'Mohun Bagan Ratna' award during Mohun Bagan Day celebrations. The event was attended by former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly, football legends Bhaichung Bhutia and IM Vijayan, along with Jose Barreto and Subrata Bhattacharya.