Bojjala, Naidu, KCR pal, dead
Former minister in undivided Andhra Pradesh Bojjala Gopalakrishna Reddy, a senior Telugu Desam party (TDP) leader, passed away due to chronic illness, while undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Hyderabad on Friday. He was 73.
According to sources, Gopalakrishna Reddy had been suffering from Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases for quite some time. He contracted Covid-19 in January this year and was recovering from its after-effects at his residence in Hyderabad. He reportedly fell unconscious at his residence on Friday afternoon and was rushed to the hospital. The doctors tried to revive him, but in vain.
Gopalakrishna Reddy joined the TDP in 1989 following the call of N.T. Rama Rao. He got a TDP ticket in 1989 and won the election from Srikalahasti with a big majority. He represented the same constituency in the erstwhile AP Assembly for three more terms, and was again elected in 2014. His son, B. Sudheer Reddy, was fielded as the TDP candidate in 2019, but he lost.
Gopalakrishna Reddy was known to be very close to TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu, and was injured along with him in the Alipiri mine blast on October 1, 2003. He was known for his straight-forward approach both outside and within the party. His colleagues recall that Gopalakrishna Reddy was the only one who could speak directly to Naidu.
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, senior politicians Tummala Nageswara Rao, Mandava Venkateswara Rao and Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy were close to him. All of them tried to pacify Chandrashekar Rao when he decided to quit TDP. Rao condoled the death of Gopalakrishna and expressed his grief at losing a close friend and political colleague. Chandrashekar Rao said he had visited Gopalakrishna and consoled him after the formation of Telangana. He expressed deep sympathies to the bereaved family members of the senior leader.
Recalling their attachment, former minister Mandava Venkateshwar Rao told Deccan Chronicle that being from a farmer family background, they had worked together for the welfare of people.
Gopalakrishna Reddy was born on April 15,
1949, in Urandur, then in Madras and now in AP’s Tirupati district. His father Ganga Subbarami Reddy was an MLA from Srikalahasti. Gopalakrishna received BSC in
1968 and BL in 1972 from Sri Venkateswara University.
He married Brunda, daughter of Congress minister the late Peddireddy Thimmaa Reddy. After marriage, Reddy moved to Hyderabad to pursue his career in law, and later joined the TDP.