HYDERABAD: Four-time MLA and journalist Solipeta Ramalinga Reddy died of cardiac arrest in the early hours of Thursday. He was 57 and is survived by his wife, son and daughter.
Ramalinga Reddy breathed his last around 1.40 am at a private hospital in Hyderabad, after which his body was taken to his native village of Chittapur in a special ambulance. He had been unwell for quite some time and was admitted to the hospital a few days ago. At a time when he was showing signs of improvement, his condition suddenly took a turn for the worse.
Ramalinga Reddy’s death rocked the ruling TRS party to an extent that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao rushed to Chittapur and spent time talking to the family and relatives. Grief-stricken, the family was unable to speak coherently as they were expecting him to recover and return home in the pink of health. They even broke down while speaking to KCR.
Ramalinga Reddy had worked as a journalist for 25 years before he joined politics in 2004. He contested on a TRS ticket from Dommata the same year and won. In 2008, he won the by-election from Dommata, again on a TRS ticket.
In the 2009 elections, he lost to Cheruku Muthyam Reddy at Dubbaka but won the elections in 2014 and 2018 from the constituency. He had served as the chairman of the Assembly Estimate Committee for 2014 and 2018.
On seeing his mortal remains, KCR became emotional and broke down. He was seen holding back his tears several times. The Chief Minister assured the family that the government and TRS would stand by them. KCR, while speaking to Finance Minister T Harish Rao and MP K Prabhakar Reddy, fondly recalled the times when he worked with Ramalinga Reddy during the Telangana movement.
MAUD and IT Minister KT Rama Rao also paid homage to the MLA. Harish, on receiving the news of Ramalinga Reddy’s death, reached Chittapur and comforted the family. He oversaw the funeral arrangements and directed officials to make the necessary preparations.
The vehicle carrying the body was decorated with flowers. Harish even helped carry the body for 1 km.
Thousands, including friends and relatives, attended the funeral, while locals gathered on the streets of Chittapur to catch a glimpse of the leader’s final journey. As police guns boomed, the last rites were performed at Ramalinga Reddy’s farmland. His son Satish Reddy lit the funeral pyre.
Journalists, poets and cultural artistes from several districts turned up for the funeral. Harish stayed back at the farmland till the last rites were performed. Several ministers, MLAs, MLCs, officials and admirers of Ramalinga Reddy attended his funeral.