VIZIANAGARAM: YSRC leader Penmatsa Sambasiva Raju (87) passed away at a private hospital in Visakhapatnam on Monday morning.
He was an eight-time MLA and a former minister in undivided Andhra Pradesh.
Raju was said to be the mentor of Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister Botcha Satyanarayana.
In 1967, he was elected to the Assembly for the first time as an Independent.
During the Congress government between 1989 and 1994, Raju was appointed as the minister for transport and civil supplies.
Coming to know about the veteran politician’s death, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy expressed his condolences and directed the officials to conduct the final rites with full State honours.
Following the Chief Minister’s directives, the final rites of the veteran leader were conducted at Moyida village of Nellimarla mandal.
Deputy Chief Minister and Tribal Welfare Minister Pushpa Srivani, Botcha Satyannarayana, Vizianagaram MP Bellana Chandra Sekhar, Vizianagaram MLA Kolagatla Veerabadra Swamy and others attended.