BJP MLA Gurupadappa passes away

Bengaluru, Nov 17: BJP MLA and former minister Gurupadappa Nagamarapalli died of a heart attack at a private hospital here today.

Nagamarapalli (74), who represented Bidar in north Karnataka, had served as a Minister in the cabinet of S R Bommai, J H Patel and Dharm Singh, besides being a six time member of Assembly.

He is survived by three sons and two daughters. As the Legislative Assembly met for the day, Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa announced the demise of Nagamarapalli and made obituary references lauding his contribution to the co-operative sector.

Nagamarapalli was a recipient of honorary doctorate from Gulbarga University. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah recalled his long association with Nagamarapalli while in the erstwhile Janata party.

He said, "Nagamarapalli's death is a great loss to Karnataka politics." Leader of Opposition BJP Jagadish Shettar said "his death is a great loss to to the party (BJP)." Members observed a minute's silence as a mark of respect, following which the Speaker adjourned the House till tomorrow.

PTI