Allagadda: The tragic death of Shobha Nagi Reddy on Thursday came as a deep shock and a major setback for the YSR Congress cadre and the people of Kurnool district.
Achieving the record of being the only woman legislator elected from the erstwhile Praja Rajyam and a four-time legislator from Allagadda, Shobha was the daughter of former minister S.V. Subba Reddy and Subba Ratnamma. Born on November 16, 1968 in Kurnool district, she married politician Bhuma Nagi Reddy of Allagadda in 1986.
She entered mainstream politics in 1996 and won the by-election contesting on a Telugu Desam ticket from the Allagadda Assembly segment the next year. She won again in 1999 against Congress candidate Gangula Prathap Reddy.
Shobha had served as the first woman chairperson of the AP State Road Transport Corporation during the Telugu Desam regime. When actor Chiranjeevi floated the Praja Rajyam, Shobha shifted loyalties and won against Mr Pratap Reddy.
Following YSR’s demise, she resigned from the Praja Rajyam and shifted to the YSR Congress. She won with a landslide victory in the by-polls in a triangular contest with a majority of 37,000 votes, against Mr Prathap Reddy. The Telugu Desam came third in those elections.
As an active woman leader and deputy floor leader of the YSR Congress, Shobha had accompanied the party’s honorary president Y.S. Vijayalakshmi and chief Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy at all major demonstrations and meetings, including at New Delhi.
Her father Mr Subba Reddy broke down after hearing the news of his daughter’s death. “I would feel proud every time she achieved milestones in politics, without defeat,” he lamented.
Shobha’s brother S.V. Mohan Reddy is contesting from the Kurnool Urban Assembly segment on a YSR Congress ticket.
