Former minister P Ramaswamy passes away

HYDERABAD: Former minister and senior BJP leader P Ramaswamy passed away on Thursday while undergoing treatment in a private hospital here. He was 83. He was popularly known as ‘Gaddam’ (beard) Ramaswamy by partymen.
A strong votary of a separate statehood movement, Ramaswamy had vowed that Telangana would be made a separate state in the 1969 movement itself.
Known as a “people’s man” in his Maharajgunj (now Goshamahal) constituency, the veteran leader used to roam around on a bullet to meet and talk to people in the consituency.
He began his political career as a municipal corporator and then went on to become an MLA twice in 1983 and 1994 elections.
Himachal Pradesh governor Bandaru Dattatreya, former Maharashtra governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao and Telangana state Bharatiya Janata Party chief Bandi Sanjay Kumar and condoled his death. tnn