Jalagam Vengala Rao (May 1921 – 12 June 1999) was for much of his life a member of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

and was the

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

of the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n state of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

which is now divided into two states,

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

and

Early life

Vengala Rao hailed from Velama community of Bayyannagudem in

Khammam district Khammam district is a district in the eastern region of the Indian state of Telangana. The city of Khammam is the district headquarters. The district shares boundaries with Suryapet district, Suryapet, Mahabubabad district, Mahabubabad, Bhadra ...

(currently part of the

state).

Career

His involvement in politics began when he was in his twenties, when he supported Congress in their campaign of armed defiance against the

Nizam of Hyderabad Nizam of Hyderabad was the title of the ruler of Hyderabad State ( part of the Indian state of Telangana, and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka). ''Nizam'' is a shortened form of (; ), and was the title bestowed upon Asaf Jah I wh ...

. He was jailed for his involvement in this campaign, which was protesting the tenancy laws operating in the Telangana region. Although he tried and failed to be elected as an independent candidate in 1952, Rao subsequently was elected on four occasions to the

Legislative Assembly of Andhra Pradesh The Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly ( Telugu: ఆంధ్రప్రదేశ్ శాసన సభ, ISO: ''Āndhra Pradēś Śāsana Sabha'') is the lower house of the bicameral legislature of the Indian state, Andhra Pradesh. The Le ...

, where he represented the

Sathupalli Sathupalli (also spelled as Sathupally, Sathupalle) is a town in Khammam district of the Indian state of Telangana. It is a Municipality in Sathupalli mandal of Kalluru revenue division. It is situated approximately east of Hyderabad, from K ...

constituency of Khammam district.

Lok Sabha

He was also twice elected to the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

- the

lower house A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...

of the

Parliament of India The Parliament of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of India, Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameralism, bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok ...

- as a representative of the Khammam district constituency. The first of his successful Assembly elections was in 1962, and the period from 1952 to that time saw him occupying the post of president for the Khammam district branch of Congress and being the first chairman of the district council.

As Home Minister

In 1968, he became State Home Minister in the state government headed by

Kasu Brahmananda Reddy Kasu Brahmananda Reddy (28 July 1909 – 20 May 1994) was the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, India, from 29 February 1964 to 30 September 1971. On 3 June 1977, he was elected president of the Indian National Congress. Early life Kasu Brahma ...

. Later, during his period as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, an office to which he was appointed by

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and stateswoman who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 un ...

and held between 10 December 1973 and 6 March 1978, Rao's hallmark was his administrative efficiency. He is also known for his handling and containment of

Naxalite Naxalism is the communist ideology of the Naxalites or Naxals, a grouping of political and insurgent groups from India. It is influenced by Maoist political sentiment and ideology. Inspired by Maoism, Charu Majumdar wrote the Historic Eight ...

insurgency, which took place during a revival of the

Telangana movement The Telangana movement refers to the movement for the separation of Telangana, from the pre-existing state of Andhra Pradesh in India. The new state corresponds to the Telugu-speaking portions of the former princely state of Hyderabad, which w ...

that sought independent statehood. He almost wiped out Naxalism from the state through extra judicial killings namely encounters. Later, the Vimadalal commission was appointed to probe into attacks on Naxalites during his period in office and his earlier actions against Communist-inspired Naxalites during the 1960s have been referred to as a "reign of terror". The official website for the government of Andhra Pradesh refers to his tenure, which came about following a period of President's rule, politically stable. Despite that popularity, he was unable to retain power in the 1978 elections.

Congress split

When Congress split during the mid-1970s, Rao initially did not join with the faction led by

that was referred to as Congress (I). However, he did join in 1984 and with his election to the Lok Sabha in that year he served in the cabinet of

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian statesman and pilot who served as the prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassination of his mother, then–prime ...

, holding the post of Union Minister for Industry until 1989. For much of this period, between 1984 and 1988, he was also president of the state organization of his political party, being the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee.

As Chief Minister

He was the 5th Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh from 10 December 1973 – 5 March 1978. It was during his tenure as Chief Minister that three universities namely

Kakatiya University Kakatiya University is a public university located in Hanumakonda district in the Indian state of Telangana. It was most recently accredited with an "A+" Grade by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council of India in the month of June ...

Acharya Nagarjuna University Acharya Nagarjuna University (IAST: ''Ācārya Nāgārjuna Vișvavidyālaya'') is a state university in Namburu, Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, India. History The university was established as Nagarjuna University by Act 43 of 1976 of A. ...

and

Sri Krishnadevaraya University Sri Krishnadevaraya University is a public university in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh, India, founded on 25 July 1981. The university is named after a patron of learning and the arts, Sri Krishnadevaraya, of the Vijayanagara empire The ...

were started, catering for three regions of Andhra Pradesh:

Coastal Andhra Coastal Andhra, also known as Kosta Andhra (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: Kōstā Āndhra), is a geographic region in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, comprising the coastal districts of the state between the East ...

, and

Rayalaseema Rayalaseema (IAST: ''Rāyalasīma'') is a geographic region in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It comprises four southern districts of the State, from prior to the districts reorganisation in 2022, namely Kurnool, Anantapur, Kadapa, and ...

. Rao initiated a World

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

Conference in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

in 1975.

Death

Jalagam Vengal Rao died on 12 June 1999.

Family

He has two sons, Jalagam Prasada Rao and Jalagam Venkat Rao. Jalagam Prasada Rao was a Member of the Legislative Assembly from Satthupalli constituency for two terms and he was a minister in N. Janardhan Reddy's cabinet. He held the portfolios of Small scale industries and Panchayat Raj. Jalagam Venkat Rao, is also a politician and was a

Member of the Legislative Assembly A Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected to sit in a legislative assembly. The term most commonly refers to members of the legislature of a federated state or an autonomous region, but is also used for several nation ...

of Andhra Pradesh, representing the INC for the same constituency, Satthupalli, as his father.

Commemoration

Rao wrote an autobiography in the

Telugu language Telugu (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. Spoken by about 96 million people (2022), Telugu is the most widely spoken member of ...

, called ''Naa Jeevitha Katha''. The contents caused some controversy with regard to the lives of other politicians. A part of it was published in English translation by ''

Outlook Outlook or The Outlook may refer to: Computing * Microsoft Outlook, also referred to as ''the classic Outlook'' an e-mail client and personal information management software product from Microsoft * Outlook for Windows, also referred to as ''the ...

'' magazine. A park in

Banjara Hills Banjara Hills is an urban commercial centre and one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. This is an upmarket locality close to Jubilee Hills. This area was a hilly forest and was least inhabited in the past. Only a ...

was named after him as

Jalagam Vengal Rao Park Jalagam Vengal Rao Park (also known as JVR Park) is a park located in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad, Telangana, India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. There is also an upscale residential neighborhood named after him – ''Vengal Rao Nagar'' - and several educational institutions.