Former united Andhra Chief Minister Konijeti Rosaiah passes away; tributes pour in

Hyderabad: Former united Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Congress leader Konijeti Rosaiah passed away on Saturday morning. He was 88.

He is survived by his wife Sivalakshmi, sons, KS Subba Rao and KSN Murthy, and daughter P Rama Devi.

"Former Governor of Tamil Nadu, former Chief Minister of United Andhra Pradesh, Statesman and a people's leader, Dr. Sri Konijeti Rosaiah Garu was brought to Star Hospitals this morning in an unresponsive state. We are sad to inform that he passed away at 8:20 am," said Medical Director, Star Hospital.

Rosaiah took over as the Chief Minister after the death of YS. Rajashekhara Reddy. He was chief minister from September 2009 to November 2010. Rosaiah was first sworn in as interim Chief Minister. His government was rattled by the separate statehood agitation by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi. He resigned as Chief Minister on November 24, 2010, citing health reasons.

Rosaiah was a powerful voice of Congress in the state legislature. He was also elected to the Lok Sabha in 1998. He served as the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president also.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has expressed grief over the demise of K Rosaiah. He conveyed condolences to the bereaved family members.

"I am deeply saddened by the death of former Chief Minister and former Governor Konijeti Rosaiah, who for long lived and breathed Congress ideology. When I first came to the Legislature as an MLC, I had a close acquaintance with Rosaiah Garu. He encouraged me by giving me advice and suggestions on how to speak on public issues regardless of party affiliation. He seemed to have a special fondness for me. The absence of such a good leader among us is a desperate loss to the Congress party and to society as well. Even personally his loss is insurmountable. My deepest sympathies to his family members," said A Revanth Reddy, President, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee.

Born on July 4, 1933, in the village of Vemuru in the Guntur district, Konijeti Roshaiya studied Commerce at Guntur Hindu College. He was elected to the Legislative Council in 1968, 1974, and 1980 on Congress ticket.

He was elected as an MLA in 1989 and 2004 from the Chirala assembly constituency. In 1998, he was elected to Lok Sabha from the Narasaraopet constituency. In 2011, he was sworn as Governor of Tamil Nadu. Rosaiah was President of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) from 1994 to 1996.

As finance minister, Rosaiah presented the state budget 16 times, a record in the country. He served as a finance minister under Marri Chenna Reddy, Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy, Nedurumalli Janardhana Reddy, and Y. S. Rajashekhara Reddy.

He retired from active politics in August 2016, after completion of his term as Governor of Tamil Nadu. His political career lasted around 60 years.