Senior Congress leader Sarojini Pulla Reddy passes away

04 February, 2013

Prominent Congress leader and Hyderabad's first woman mayor B. Sarojini Pulla Reddy breathed her last at around 2am on Sunday at her residence in Bowenpally area of Hyderabad, after prolonged illness. She was 85.

A former minister in the Andhra Pradesh cabinet and also a former member of the Congress Working Committee, Ms Reddy was the first woman president of Hyderabad Congress Committee. She was suffering from cancer.

She joined the Congress five decades ago and was elected as councillor in the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation in 1965. Soft spoken, Sarojini had a good rapport with both Indira Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. She was known as close associate of former chief minister Dr Marri Chenna Reddy and emerged as an influential woman politician in the state.

She became the first lady mayor of Hyderabad -- and the second woman to don the honour in India after Tara Cherian, who became the lady mayor of Madras in 1966. She was elected to the Andhra Pradesh assembly from Malakpet of Hyderabad city in 1967. She represented the constituency twice but lost in 1978.

She became the first chairperson of Hyderabad Urban Development Authority in 1975. She was first inducted into the cabinet in 1979 by Dr. Chenna Reddy. She was also a minister in the cabinets of T Anjaiah, Bhavanam Venkatram and Vijayabhaskar Reddy.

Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, and senior Congress and opposition leaders condoled her death.