[Blog] Kailash Purryag – A principled Mauritian

It is with great sadness that I learned yesterday morning of the demise of Kailash Purryag, a towering figure in Mauritian politics, who served as Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Speaker of the National Assembly, President of the Republic and who also led the Mauritius Labour Party for a few years.
His public life shrouded most of the time in some kind of quasi anonymity due to his humility and self-effacing attitude, Kailash was a highly respected and credible voice behind the scenes, particularly on legal and policy matters.

My encounters with him were often more than conversations—they were excursions through history, political philosophy, and the shaping of modern Mauritius.

Rooted in SSR’s Legacy

His admiration for Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam was central. He repeatedly pointed to SSR’s visionary decision, in the 1950s, to prioritise educational reform over agriculture—choosing to become Liaison Officer for Education and launching an ambitious school-building programme. «No one should be uneducated,» SSR had asserted, as 25,000 children remained out of school. This ethos of equity deeply resonated with Kailash.

He often recalled passionately how SSR made bold geopolitical choices: recognising very early the People’s Republic of China, joining the OAU, and embracing the Lome Convention and the Sugar Protocol, which became pillars of economic diversification, if not of our very economic survival. He admired SSR’s pragmatism—his support for establishing key institutions, and authorising Air Mauritius to fly to South Africa during apartheid to rescue the airline from bankruptcy. He would cite Sir Gaëtan Duval, who described SSR as a «visionnaire.»

Defender of Democratic Values

Kailash was deeply invested in building modern Mauritius and in safeguarding the constitutional order. He believed our Constitution had been framed by gentlemen for gentlemen—not for “rogues,” as he put it—who would undermine parliamentary democracy.

He saw Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam as the ideal and natural person to carry out the legacy of SSR, to restore the democratic architecture of Mauritius and to heal communal divisions.

He also felt Paul Bérenger, whom he deeply respected, would be an ideal partner to Dr Navin Ramgoolam in this mission. He admired Bérenger’s principled stand in the 1970s when he favoured lifelong pensions for dockers and stevedores over lump-sum bonuses—“a true patriot,” Kailash would remark.

A Presidency of Presence, Not Pomp

As President, he quietly visited economically vulnerable regions like Cité Kennedy and invited disadvantaged children to State House—an act rooted in his belief that education was the most powerful instrument for upliftment. He later advocated for a constitutional review, proposing an Advisory Council and a legal entity to support the Presidency. His frustration with delayed municipal elections under the previous administration was palpable—he saw it as an affront to democratic accountability.

A Legal and Intellectual Mind

Kailash’s knowledge of constitutional law was formidable, and his memory—prodigious. He     frequently drew upon the insights of Lee Kuan Yew -his other political idol - articulating at length the critical role of education as a strategic lever for national transformation. He had also long anticipated the economic fallout from the loss of the Sugar Protocol, urging in the 1990s the urgent need to develop new economic pillars.

As an avid reader, Kailash Purryag often shared excerpts from international figures—Macron’s interviews, Gordon Brown’s memoirs, literature on the Fourth Industrial Revolution—always drawing connections to local realities. Our understanding of the world as it existed in the 2010s has grown obsolete he would say, and that should compel us to critically reassess our assumptions and reimagine our outlook for the future.

He loved quoting Harold Macmillan’s famous words: “Events, dear boy, events,” when a journalist asked him what he feared most for the near future. This Macmillan quote has come  to illustrate the unpredictable nature of politics. The Wakashio disaster often came up in such reflections.

An Intimate Portrait

Kailash remained a ‘grassroots’ person till the end, often saying: «Your people are your barometers.” He lamented the outward migration from Mauritian villages with 14 houses deserted by their residents in one village as their residents sought better pastures abroad. He used to echo Maurice Giraud’s views on an economy still tilted against the vulnerable – quietly advocating for greater social justice and the urgent need to restore meritocracy and opportunity to all Mauritians, without any distinction. While his reserved stance toward the media mirrored SSR’s own distrust, it may explain why his subtle influence remained under-acknowledged.

In his final years, though he knew his time was limited, he still held onto an elusive hope to serve under a government led again by Dr Navin Ramgoolam—motivated not by ambition, but by principles of good governance and integrity.

Those who were close to him will miss his rhetoric, his roaring voice in spirited discussions, his unshaken belief in principles as well as his recollections of a bygone era shaped by selfless commitment to social progress.

A soul surrendered to the divine embrace of Lord Shiva. A pillar of his family. A quiet yet fierce custodian of democracy. Kailash Purryag who was discreetly admired across party lines remains one of the most intellectually sharp and morally anchored personalities I’ve ever known.

I extend my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and to all who feel the weight of this loss. With the departure of Kailash to the Heavenly Abode, we remember and honour someone who elevated public discourse and who had little patience for pettiness, preferring instead a path of thoughtful engagement and principled restraint. In an era often clouded by noise, he chose substance and depth. May his soul rest in eternal peace.

Trilock Dwarka