Magunta Subbarama Reddy (26 November 1947 1 December 1995) was an Indian politician, liquor baron, and newspaper publisher. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) representing

Ongole Ongole (), natively known as Ongolu, is a city in Prakasam district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Prakasam district. It is known for Ongole cattle, an indigenous breed of oxen. Etymology The name 'Ongole' i ...

in 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 ...

India's Parliament The Parliament of India (ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The President o ...

, as 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 ...

(INC). Subbarama Reddy was also the owner of ''Udayam'' newspaper, which he acquired from its founder

Dasari Narayana Rao Dasari Narayana Rao (4 May 1942 – 30 May 2017) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, actor, producer, lyricist, and politician, primarily known for his work in Telugu cinema. Over his four decade career, he directed more than 150 feature ...

in the early 1990s, and continued to oversee until its closure in 1995. He was assassinated by

Naxalites 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 ...

in 1995. He was the elder brother of

Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy (born 15 October 1953) is an Indian politician and liquor baron currently serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Ongole constituency in the Lok Sabha, affiliated with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) si ...

, who also became a prominent politician and an MP.

Background

Magunta Subbarama Reddy, originally from

Nellore district Nellore district, officially known as Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore district in Coastal Andhra Region, is one of the 26 districts in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. According to the 2011 Census, the district's population was 2,963,557 of which ...

, began his political career in the

Prakasam district Prakasam district is one of the twelve districts in the coastal Andhra region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It was formed in 1970 and reorganised on 4 April 2022. The headquarters of the district is ...

, representing the Ongole constituency as a member of the Indian National Congress. The Magunta family is known for their significant influence in the Prakasam and Nellore districts 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 ...

Politics

In 1991, Subbarama Reddy contested and won the Lok Sabha seat from Ongole as a Congress candidate, marking his entry into national politics. His political legacy was continued by his family members, notably his widow, Magunta Parvatamma, who successfully contested the Ongole MP seat in 1996 as a Congress candidate after his death. In 1998, his brother,

, also won the Ongole seat, further solidifying the Magunta family’s influence in Andhra Pradesh’s political landscape.

Publishing

In 1991, Subbarama Reddy acquired ''Udayam'', a prominent Telugu daily newspaper founded by filmmaker

. With ambitions to expand ''Udayam'''s reach across Andhra Pradesh, he also planned to revive the historic ''

Andhra Patrika ''Andhra Patrika'' was an Indian Telugu-language newspaper founded by Kasinathuni Nageswara Rao on 9 September 1908. It was initially a weekly publication and later transformed into a daily newspaper. It played an influential role in India� ...

'' and launch a new

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

-language daily. To support these ventures, he invested in advanced printing technology. However, his publishing efforts faced financial strain due to the alcohol prohibition imposed in Andhra Pradesh, which heavily impacted his liquor business—a primary revenue source supporting his media investments. By 1995, ''Udayam'' had accumulated significant financial losses, a decline in readership, and substantial debt, leading to its closure on May 23, 1995.

Death

On 1 December 1995, Subbarama Reddy, along with his gunman, Ch. Venkataratnam, were shot dead in the former's house by members of the

People's War Group People's, branded as ''People's ViennaLine'' until May 2018, and legally ''Altenrhein Luftfahrt GmbH'', is an Austro-Swiss airline headquartered in Vienna, Austria. It operates scheduled and charter passenger flights mainly from its base at St. ...

(PWG). In 2009, the Supreme Court upheld the life sentence of Patangi Balarama Venkata Ganesh for his role in the killing, citing strong evidence. However, the court dismissed the CBI's appeal against the acquittal of his co-accused, Vistaria Prakash, due to insufficient evidence.

References

External links

Official biographical sketch in Parliament of India website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reddy, Magunta Subbarama Lok Sabha members from Andhra Pradesh India MPs 1991–1996 1947 births 1995 deaths Indian National Congress politicians from Andhra Pradesh