Surekha
Telangana , however, produced a striking exception in P Indrakaran Reddy, who held the portfolio from 2014 through both BRS governments until 2023. With Konda Surekha being shown the door by the Congress, ending her tenure prematurely, the latest development has brought back focus on a decades-old trend surrounding the portfolio. The long list of leaders who had a curtailed tenure as endowments minister includes Andhra Pradesh’s first woman minister TN Sadalakshmi, former prime minister PV Narasimha Rao and C Ramachandraiah, the last endowments minister of united Andhra Pradesh. The trend, which goes as far back as 1960s, continued even after bifurcation, with frequent changes and controversies around the endowments ministry in residual Andhra Pradesh, too.
He handled the minister from 1985 to 1989 under NTR. He returned to the portfolio after the 1994 elections, but his second stint lasted only about nine months as NTR lost his party following the 1995 TDP revolt. Damodara Anjaneyulu handled the ministry from 1999 to 2001 until a cabinet reshuffle. He was succeeded by Dandu Sivaramaraju until 2004.
Simhadi Satyanarayana was among ministers who came closest to completing a full term. The pattern persisted through Chandrababu Naidu’s second term.
Sadalakshmi, who served as endowments minister from 1962 to 1964 in the Neelam Sanjiva Reddy cabinet, was the first woman to hold the portfolio. PV Narasimha Rao took charge of endowments in 1964 under K Brahmananda Reddy and continued until 1967 elections. R Ramalinga Raju was endowments minister during K Brahmananda Reddy’s tenure and had to quit along with the cabinet in 1971 amid political turmoil as the separate Telangana movement gained momentum. MS Murthy, who took charge under PV Narasimha Rao in 1972, lasted only about 10 months before resigning during the Jai Andhra movement. The instability continued through subsequent Congress governments and those in saddle during the 1978-83 period could not complete endowments tenure as govts and cabinets kept changing. During NT Rama Rao’s first stint as CM, endowments minister E Anjaneyulu died in office in 1983, after which Veerabhadra Rao took charge.
A vocal proponent of separate Telangana, Sadalakshmi took decisions aimed at bringing reforms in temple administration, including providing priestly training to Dalits. However, her initiatives met with opposition from a section, and she was shifted to social welfare after about a year. After the formation of a new cabinet, Rao was given the health ministry. The political turbulence of early 1970s shortened many a tenures. Political upheaval following NTR’s temporary removal from office resulted in a short-lived stint for Rao.