Fireworks set aside by a day as House condoles demise of Maganti Gopinath

Hyderabad: The State Assembly monsoon session which began on Saturday, set aside the heated debate on various issues for Sunday as the House condoled the demise of Jubilee Hills MLA Maganti Gopinath who died recently.

Both the ruling Congress and the main opposition BRS have drawn battle lines for discussions on the Justice PC Ghose Commission report on the Kaleshwaram project, BC reservations, heavy rains and floods, and the urea shortage among others.

However, on the first day of the session, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy moved the condolence motion in memory of Jubilee Hills MLA Maganti Gopinath. He recalled MLA’s political journey, describing his death as an irreparable loss to his family and constituency.

The Chief Minister recalled the services rendered by Gopinath from student days to as an active political leader. He said Gopinath had been active since his student days and started his political career in the Telugu Desam Party in 1983. The departed leader served as Telugu Youth president of the erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh state between 1985 and 1992.

Recognising his services, Gopinath was appointed as the Director of the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority in 1987-88 and as a member of the District Consumer Forum in 1988-93.

“ Gopinath ‘ s untimely death left the family in a big shock” , CM Revanth Reddy said, praying to God that the departed soul rests in peace. BRS working president KT Rama Rao paid tributes. “Maganti Gopinath was an ardent admirer of former Chief Minister late NT Rama Rao. He distributed sarees to women in his constituency during Bathukamma festivities before the scheme was formally launched by the government,” he said. BJP MLA K Venkataramana Reddy, AIMIM MLA Ahmed Bin Balala, CPI MLA K Sambasiva Rao and several other legislators recalled Gopinath’s services.