K Rosaiah, former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh and Governor of Tamil Nadu, passed away after a brief illness here.
A sharp-witted politician, the 88-year-old politician served as a Minister in the Cabinets of various Chief Ministers, holding several portfolios. He set a record of presenting 15 State Budgets for the undivided Andhra Pradesh.
Born in July 1933 in Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, Rosaiah had completed graduated with B Com degree at the Hindu College, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh.
He held various positions in Andhra Pradesh. He started his political career as an MLA from 1968 to 1985. Rosaiah then became the Minister for Roads and buildings, housing and transport from 1979 to 1983 under M Channa Reddy.
From 1898 to 1994, he served as the member of legislative assembly and Minister of Finance and Transport, Andhra Pradesh.
He was also the leader of house, Andhra Pradesh legislative Assembly from 1992 to 1993. Then he was elected to the 12th Lok Sabha in 1998. Subsequently, he also served as minister in the Cabinets of T Anjaiah, Kotla Vijaya Baskara Reddy, and N Janardhana Reddy.
After the death of YS Rajasekhar Reddy in a helicopter crash in 2009, he took over as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh at a time the movement for separate Statehood for Telangana had reached its peak.
Governor of TN
He put in his papers a year later and was appointed as the Governor of Tamil Nadu in 2011. After he stepped down as the Governor in 2016, he moved to Hyderabad.
K Chandrashekar Rao and YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, the Chief Ministers of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, have expressed grief over Rosaiah’s demise.