BJP's first torchbearer in Lok Sabha C Janga Reddy passes away

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Reddy, saying he devoted his life to public service

Chandupatla Janga Reddy (87), the first Lok Sabha MP for the BJP from south India passed away on Saturday.

Reddy was one of the only two BJP Lok Sabha MPs elected in the 1984 general elections, conducted after the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

The other BJP MP was A K Patel, who was elected from Mehsana in Gujarat.

In the 1984 election, Reddy defeated P V Narasimha Rao, a minister in the Indira Gandhi cabinet, from the Hanumakonda constituency in the then united Andhra Pradesh and now Telangana.

“Janga Reddy garu was an effective voice for the BJP at a very critical phase of the Party’s trajectory,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his condolence message.

Reddy was reportedly undergoing treatment for age-related ailments.

Reddy was born in 1935 in Parakala village of Warangal in an agricultural family. Reddy was attracted to RSS ideology from a young age and worked as its Vistarak in Warangal, expanding the Shakas.

Reddy joined the Jana Sangh, the forerunner to BJP, in 1965. After resigning from the government service as a teacher, Reddy was elected as MLA from Parakala in 1967 on the Deepam (diya) symbol.

For his efforts bringing electricity connections to many households in the constituency, Reddy became popular as “Current Janganna.” In 1978, he was elected as MLA from Shayampet constituency as Janata Party candidate.

After his historic win in 1984, Reddy could not contest later elections from Hanumakonda as the LS seat was allocated by the BJP to alliance partners like the TDP.

“Reddy garu devoted his life to public service. He was an integral part of the efforts to take the Jana Sangh and BJP to new heights of success. He made a place in the hearts and minds of several people. He also motivated many Karyakartas. Saddened by his demise,” Modi further said in his tweet.

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