Calcutta, Sept. 30: Kamal Basu, wife of former chief minister Jyoti Basu, died after prolonged illness at a hospital in Salt Lake this evening. She was 79.

Doctors said she passed away following heart failure after a bout of pneumonia. She was suffering from chronic renal failure and diabetes and was undergoing dialysis since February.

Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee met Jyoti Basu at Indira Bhavan, his Salt Lake residence. Ministers and CPM leaders paid their last respects as well.