Telangana’s ‘people’s leader’ Bandaru Dattatreya appointed Himachal Pradesh Governor

It has been quite a wait for the 72-year-old, who was dropped from the Union Cabinet during the first tenure of the Narendra Modi government, and was later denied a Lok Sabha ticket in the last general election from Secunderabad

Former Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya addressing the media conference in Hyderabad on March 22, 2019.

 

Bandaru Dattatreya, who on Sunday was appointed as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh, is known as a people's leader in his native Telangana.

It has been quite a wait for the 72-year-old Mr. Dattatreya, who was dropped from the Union Cabinet during the first tenure of the Narendra Modi government, and was later denied a Lok Sabha ticket in the last general election from Secunderabad, a seat he has won many times.

The former Union Minister was first elected in 1991 to the 10th Lok Sabha. He was elected a second time in 1998 and worked as the Union Minister of State, Urban Development under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

He was re-elected in 1999 and served as both the Union Minister of State for Urban Development and the Railways.

He is credited with bringing the Multi Modal Transport System (MMTS) to Hyderabad.

Mr. Dattatreya was given the post of Minister with Independent Charge for Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation in 2004. He was elected a fourth time to Parliament in 2014 and served in the Narendra Modi-led government as the Minister of State (Independent Charge), Labour and Employment.

Many thought his political career ended when he was denied the Lok Sabha ticket from Secunderabad this year. The present Union Minister of State for Home, G. Kishan Reddy, was given the seat.

Born on June 12, 1947 in Hyderabad, Mr. Dattatreya is a B.Sc. graduate from Osmania University, Hyderabad. He started as a RSS pracharak in 1968 and held positions in various related organisations. He was arrested under the controversial Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) during the Emergency.

He joined the BJP in 1980 and worked as the secretary for its Andhra Pradesh unit. He was then appointed general secretary from 1981 to 1989 and was the president of the Andhra Pradesh unit between 1996 and 1998. He served as the party president for a second time between 2006 and 2009.　

During the Telangana movement, he started the Alai Bhalai programme, where leaders from all political parties rubbed shoulders. The programme is a regular affair during Dasara.