Nadendla Bhaskara Rao Passes Away at 90

Former Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh, Nadendla Bhaskara Rao, passed away at the age of 90. He had been ailing for some time and breathed his last while undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Hyderabad.

Born on June 23, 1935, Bhaskara Rao was a lawyer by profession and a graduate of Osmania University, Hyderabad. He entered active politics in 1978, when he was elected as an MLA for the first time, and went on to serve as a minister in the cabinet of then Chief Minister Marri Chenna Reddy.

Bhaskara Rao was among the senior leaders who played a key role in the formation of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in 1982 and is often regarded as one of its co-founders. He was also considered a mentor to N.T. Rama Rao (NTR), who led the party to a historic victory in the 1983 Assembly elections and became Chief Minister. Bhaskara Rao served as finance minister in the NTR cabinet.

In August 1984, during NTR’s absence from the country for medical treatment in the United States, Bhaskara Rao led a political revolt within the TDP, with support from Congress (I) and dissident legislators, and briefly assumed office as Chief Minister. However, following NTR’s return and a nationwide ‘Save Democracy’ movement backed by several opposition parties, the Centre intervened, leading to the reinstatement of NTR as Chief Minister after Bhaskara Rao resigned. The episode remains one of the most dramatic political developments in the state’s history.

He served as Chief Minister for just 31 days, making him one of the shortest-serving CMs in Andhra Pradesh.

Subsequently expelled from the TDP, Bhaskara Rao joined the Congress (I) and later went on to be elected to the 12th Lok Sabha from the Khammam constituency in 1998.

After a long period of political silence, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in July 2019 in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah at a public meeting near Hyderabad.

Bhaskara Rao also authored his autobiography, Walking with Destiny, released in 2012, which stirred political debate at the time.

He is survived by his son, Nadendla Manohar, an MLA from Tenali and a minister in the Andhra Pradesh government led by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.