Srinivas, often referred to as DS, held positions as the Minister for Rural Development and Information & Public Relations in the Congress-led central government from 1989 to 1994. He later served as the Minister for Higher Education and Intermediate Education in the Y S Rajasekhara Reddy government from 2004 to 2009.
Dharmapuri Srinivas, a veteran Congress leader from Telangana and former Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP), passed away early Saturday morning at his residence following a prolonged illness, according to his family members.
At the age of 76, Srinivas is survived by two sons. His elder son, Dharmapuri Sanjay, is a Congress leader and former mayor of Nizamabad, while his younger son, Arvind Dharmapuri, currently serves as a Member of Parliament (MP) from Nizamabad under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) banner.
“My father Srinivas, affectionately known as Seenanna, has passed away. I will deeply miss you, daddy! He was not just my father but also my mentor and teacher. He taught me courage and resilience, and emphasized the importance of loving and serving people. Daddy, your legacy will always live on in me,” wrote Arvind in a Facebook post at 3:30 am on Saturday.
Srinivas, a veteran Congress leader, served as a three-time MLA from Nizamabad (rural) in 1989, 1999, and 2004. He held the position of president of the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee twice and played a crucial role in leading the party to victory in 2004 and 2009.
Popularly known as DS, Srinivas served as Minister for Rural Development and Information & Public Relations in the Congress-led central government from 1989 to 1994. Later, he held the portfolios of Higher Education and Intermediate Education in the Y S Rajasekhara Reddy government from 2004 to 2009.
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Srinivas played a pivotal role in championing the Telangana cause within the Congress party. He was instrumental in forging an alliance between the Congress and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which later became the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), in 2004. Following the state’s bifurcation, Srinivas resigned from the Congress and joined the TRS on July 2, 2015. He subsequently became a Rajya Sabha member but faced marginalization within the party after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections due to his support for his son Arvind’s candidacy from Nizamabad against TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao’s daughter, Kalvakuntla Kavitha.
After completing his Rajya Sabha term in 2022, he re-joined the Congress but took a backseat from active participation in politics due to declining health.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president and Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, along with his cabinet colleagues, expressed deep sorrow at Srinivas’s passing and offered their heartfelt condolences to his family members.