Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister S Jaipal Reddy, 77, died in the intervening night of July 27-28 and is survived by two sons and a daughter. Following the news of his passing, rich tributes were paid by leaders across the political spectrum who hailed him as an outstanding politician, orator and administrator.
Born in 1942 at Madgul village in present-day Telangana, Reddy had started aiming for a role in politics after completing his graduation from Osmania University in Hyderabad. While he began his career as an active Congress worker, when the Emergency was promulgated in 1975, he stuck to his principles and protested against his own party. Reddy then had a brief stint with the Janata Party between 1985 and 1988, before he returned to the Congress in the 90s.
Reddy's limited physical mobility due to polio never deterred him from achieving political heights and he served as a Lok Sabha MP for five terms (starting 1984), as a member of Rajya Sabha for two terms and was a four-term MLA.
HIGHLIGHT REEL
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- He did not hesitate to oppose his then boss, former PM Indira Gandhi, on promulgation of Emergency
- As then Union Minister for Urban Development, batted for freedom to states in execution of metro projects
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He also held several key portfolios in successive governments, including Information and Broadcasting Minister in the IK Gujral government and Petroleum Minister and later as Urban Development Minister in the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government.
Besides earning him accolades, his exceptional oratorical skills and articulation made him the spokesperson for the United Front and National Front governments and the Congress Party. Reddy was also a staunch supporter of separate statehood for Telangana and reportedly played a crucial role in convincing the UPA-II government to grant separate statehood to Telangana.
President Ram Nath Kovind remembered Reddy as a "thinking person's politician and an outstanding parliamentarian" while Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu described him as an exemplary orator with "razor sharp intellect and biting wit".
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered him as an effective administrator and his predecessor Manmohan Singh hailed him as a treasure of wisdom and knowledge. Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi said Reddy was an erudite and humane leader who enriched Parliament and different governments he served.
He will be cremated here on Monday with full state honours, said Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao.
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 "S Jaipal Reddy")
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