Hyderabad: Veteran Congress leader and former Andhra Pradesh Minister M. Satyanarayana Rao died in a hospital in Hyderabad on Tuesday morning.
Popularly known as MSR, he was 87 years old.He is survived by a wife, two daughters and two sons.
MSR, who also served as a Member of Parliament for three terms, Had tested positive for covid-19 and was admitted to the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) on Sunday.
He was put on ventilator after his condition became critical. He breathed his last at 3.45 am on Tuesday.
Coming from Vedira village in Karimnagar district, MSR played an important role in the Telangana movement in 1969.
He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Karimnagar in 1971 on a Telangana Praja Samiti ticket.
He was re-elected from the same constituency as the Congress Party candidate in 1977 and 1980.
MSR, who had a long stint as General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee during Indira Gandhi’s leadership,headed the Congress party in undivided Andhra Pradesh between 2000 and 2004.
He was elected to the Andhra Pradesh Assembly in 2004 and joined the Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s cabinet as a minister.
In 2006, he challenged Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief Chandrashekhar Rao to resign from his Karimnagar Lok Sabha seat and re-election on a separate Telangana issue.
He offered to quit the ministerial post and the membership of the Assembly to contest against Chandrasekhar Rao. He had also put forth the condition that whoever loses the election will have to take political retirement and stop talking about on the issue of separate Telangana state.
After Chandrasekhar Rao accepted the challenge and won the by-election against Congress party’s T. Jeevan Reddy with a huge majority, MSR kept his word and resigned from the cabinet.
The senior leader twice served as the chairman of Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC).
Chief Minister of Telangana. Chandrasekhar Rao has mourned the death of Satyanarayana Rao. He expressed his condolences to the bereaved family members.
“As a pro-Telangana, MP, minister in the United States and president of the RTC, MSR has shown a particular style and is known as a straight man in politics,” said the CM. Chandrasekhar Rao directed Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar to arrange for the cremation of MSR with official honors.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy also expressed grief over the death of MSR and expressed his condolences to the bereaved families.
“Saddened by the death of Satyanarayana Rao Garu”. MSR Garu will be remembered for his enlightening knowledge in Telangana development matters,tweeted Congress party’s incharge for Telangana, Manickam Tagore.
