Kakinada: Senior political leader and former Kovvuru MLA Pendyala Venkata Krishna Rao (71), popular as Krishna Babu, passed away in a private hospital at Hyderabad late last night on Monday.
He had been suffering from health problems for the past two years. He survived two sons and a daughter.
Krishna Babu played a key role in erstwhile West Godavari district, in particular for Telugu Desam. Krishna Babu, a nephew of the Sarvaraya Sugars managing director late Mullapudi Harischandra Prasad, entered politics in 1983, when the film hero late N.T. Rama Rao established the Telugu Desam Party.
He won from Kovvuru assembly segment in 1983, 1985, 1989, 1994 and 2004. He was defeated in 1999 elections by G.S. Rao, the Congress candidate. However, in 2009, when the constituency got bifurcated, Kovvuru assembly segment became reserved for scheduled castes. Krishna Babu thus could not contest in elections.
However, Krishna Babu continued to dictate politics in Kovvuru constituency. In 2014, he joined YSRC. Since then, he continued to support Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy so far.
Krishna Babu is brother-in-law of former Union Minister Bolla Buliramayya. Krishna Babu’s son-in-law Rajiv Krishna is the YSRC in-charge of Kovvur assembly segment now.
Home minister Taneti Vanitha, Gopalapuram MLA Talari Venkata Rao, Telugu Desam and Jana Sena alliance candidate from Kovvuru Muppidi Venkateswara Rao, YSRC leaders Kanatamaneni Ramakrishna, Jonnalagadda Subba Raya Chowdary and others have expressed their condolences over the death of Krishna Babu.
