Hyderabad, Aug 24 (IANS) Veteran CPI leader Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy was bid adieu by leaders cutting across party lines on Sunday as his body was handed over to the Gandhi Medical College after a funeral procession with state honours.

A posse of policemen offered a gun salute, opened fire in the air and observed a two-minute silence as a mark of respect to the departed soul.

The police personnel playing the band led the funeral procession, which began from Maqdoom Bhavan, the office of the Communist Party of India (CPI).

Communist workers offered ‘Lal Salaam’ and raised the slogan of ‘Comrade Sudhakar Reddy amar rahe’ as the coffin was kept on the flower-bedecked vehicle.

A large number of CPI and CPI-M leaders and workers holding the party flag participated in the procession, which concluded at Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad, where Sudhakar Reddy’s body was donated to Gandhi Medical College by his family members. His eyes will be donated to L.V. Prasad Eye Hospital.

CPI national General Secretary D. Raja, national Secretary Narayana, state secretary K. Sambasiva Rao, senior leader Aziz Pasha, and other leaders were present.

In the morning, Sudhakar Reddy’s mortal remains were shifted to the CPI office from Care Hospital, Gachibowli, where he passed away late on Friday night due to age-related problems.

Sudhakar Reddy was 83 and is survived by two sons.

He served as CPI national General Secretary from 2012 to 2019 and represented Nalgonda in the Lok Sabha for two terms. He was a member of the 12th and 14th Lok Sabha, representing the Nalgonda seat.

The body was kept at the CPI office till 3 p.m. to enable leaders, workers and followers to pay respects.

Former Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu, Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N. Chandrababu Naidu, Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, and several ministers paid their last respects to Sudhakar Reddy.

State Congress President Mahesh Kumar Goud, BRS Working President K. T. Rama Rao, Lok Satta founder Jayaprakash Narayan, Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi (MRPS) founder Manda Krishna Madiga, MLC M. Kodandaram, and civil liberties activist Haragopal also paid their homage.

Born in Kanchupadu village in Mahabubnagar district of Telangana on March 25, 1942, Sudhakar Reddy began his political career from the All India Students Federation (AISF).

He was elected twice to the Lok Sabha from the Nalgonda constituency in 1998 and 2004.

He was widely respected for his unwavering commitment to workers’ rights and social justice. Dedicated to the Leftist movement, he participated in many grassroots struggles.

Sudhakar Reddy was known as a passionate advocate for the marginalised and an articulate voice for the working class. He was one of the last Communist stalwarts from the Telugu states.

–IANS

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