Bandaru Dattatreya, who on Sunday was appointed as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh, is known as a people’s leader in his native Telangana.
It has been quite a wait for 72-year-old Mr. Dattatreya, who was dropped from the Union Cabinet during the first tenure of the Narendra Modi government, and was later denied a Lok Sabha ticket in the last general election from Secunderabad, a seat he has won many times.
He was first elected to the 10th Lok Sabha in 1991 and in 1998 for the second time when he worked as the Union Minister of State, Urban Development under Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He was re-elected in 1999 and yet again given an opportunity to serve as the Union Minister of State for Urban Development and also Railways and is credited with bringing in Multi Modal Transport System (MMTS) to Hyderabad.
Independent charge
Mr. Dattatreya was elevated as Minister of State with Independent Charge for Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation in 2004. He was elected to Parliament for the fourth time in 2014 and included in Narendra Modi’s government as Minister of State (Independent Charge), Labour and Employment.
Many thought his political career ended when he was denied the Secunderabad Parliament ticket that he held for several years and the present Union Minister of State for Home, G. Kishan Reddy was favoured in his place. But Mr. Dattatreya continued his work for the party without showing any dissent and has now been rewarded with the Governor’s post.
Born on June 12, 1947 in Hyderabad, Mr. Dattatreya is a darling of masses and widely respected by political leaders of all hues.
A B.Sc graduate from Osmania University, Hyderabad he started his social career as a RSS pracharak in 1968 and held various positions in various organisations associated with right wing groups. He was arrested jailed under MISA during the Emergency.
He joined the BJP in 1980 and worked as secretary, BJP Andhra Pradesh unit. He was elevated and functioned as general secretary from 1981 to 89. From 1996-98 he worked as the president of the BJP AP unit during which the party flourished. He served in the same post for second time between 2006 and 2009.
During the Telangana movement, he created a platform with the “Alai Bhalai” programme where leaders from all political parties rubbed shoulders despite their vast political differences. The programme is a regular affair during the Dasara time and continues to bring in leaders of all political parties together.