A. V Sreedharan, 72, former Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, died at Palloor near Mahe on Friday. A six-time legislator who represented Palloor in the Assembly, he died due to age-related ailments at his residence. He is survived by his wife and two sons.
He will be cremated with full State honours at his residence at 10 a.m on Saturday morning. An unassuming and soft-spoken politician, Mr. Sreedharan rose to prominence after a protracted struggle on behalf of the working class, especially mill workers in Mahe.
He first entered the Assembly in 1985 after defeating Chandrasekharan of the Janata Party with a huge majority. He went on to win every Assembly election till 2006, which was the last time he contested. He had to stay away from the 2011 Assembly elections following the merger of Pallor with Mahe during the delimitation exercise.
A stickler for principles, Mr. Sreedharan, though being a senior Congress politician, could not make it to the Ministry due to internal power dynamics in the party unit. In his last term, the party made him Deputy Speaker.
He was honoured at a special session of the Puducherry Legislative Assembly in the presence of Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on May 1, 2010 to mark his completion of 25 years in the legislature.
Recalling his long association with Mr. Sreedharan, the current Assembly Speaker V. Vaithilingam said he lived like a common man. “He never aspired for any post and was a dedicated Congress worker. He belonged to the old Gandhian school of politics,” Mr. Vaithilingam told The Hindu .
The Speaker said he was widely respected in party circles for being a true Congressman. Deputy Speaker V.P. Sivakolundu and Assembly Secretary Vincent Rayer will represent the legislature at the funeral.
Minister for Public Works A. Namassivayam and Minister for Social Welfare M. Kandasamy will attend the funeral, said a functionary with the Pradesh Congress Committee.
Meanwhile, the Council of Ministers expressed “deep sorrow and anguish” at the untimely demise of Mr. Sreedharan, who had “rendered invaluable service for the development of [the] Union Territory of Puducherry” and offered condolences to the bereaved family.
“His sudden demise is a great loss for the people of the Union Territory of Puducherry,” a Government press note stated.
The press note recalled that during his six terms as an MLA, he held various posts including that of Chairman, Legislative Assembly Govt. Assurance- Committee: 1985-1987; Chairman, Legislative Assembly Estimate Committee: 1988-1990; Chairman, Mahe Regional Planning Advisory Committee: 1992-1996; Parliamentary Secretary to Chief Minister: 1997-1999; and Government Whip in the 10th Legislative Assembly, Parliamentary Secretary to Chief Minister in the 11th Legislative Assembly and Deputy Speaker: 2006-2011.
On account of State mourning, the International Day for the Differently Abled scheduled for Saturday has been postponed, the Government said.
