Farmer’s leader Puttannaiah passes away

Mandya: Melkote MLA and farmers’ leader K S Puttannaiah passed away because of a heart attack on Sunday night. He was 69.

On Sunday night, Puttannaiah was watching a Pro Kabbadi tournament at Sir M Visvesvaraya Stadium, Mandya, when was feeling uneasy. He was taken to Mandya Institute of Medical Science where he breathed his last at around 10.45pm.

Puttannaiah was a leader of the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha and associate of farmer leader M D Nanjundaswamy, he was later associated with the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (Hasiru Sene).

He lost three Assembly polls from the recent Pandavapura constituency and once from Mandya in the Lok Sabha elecctions. He was elected to the assembly in 1994 from Pandavapura, Mandya, as an independent. In 2013, he was re-elected from Melkote constituency as a candidate of Sarvodaya Party drove by Dalit author Devanuru Mahadeva.

According to sources in the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, the funeral is expected to be held with state honours at his native village, Kyathanalli, in Pandavapura taluk on Monday.

Puttannaiah was born on December 23, 1949. He finished his graduation at D. Banumaiah College in Mysuru. He took KRRS enrollment in 1983. After that he never thought back, and was always battled for farmers and their rights. He was the main leader in the Assembly who could adequately table the issues with ground reality and measurements on Cauvery agitation, drought, drinking water, load shedding, farmer’s suicides, and badgering by fund organizations.

Puttannaiah’s demise is a major hit to the agriculturists’ development in the State. Regardless of whether it was the issue of load-shedding or the settling of procurement cost for sugarcane, Puttannaiah was dependably in the cutting edge, raising his voice for the help of agriculturists. His huge knowledge on water disputes between States,, particularly the Cauvery issue between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, and his enthusiasm to illuminate misfortunes of farmer group had earned him wide acknowledgment as a farmer’s leader.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has grieved the demise of Puttannaiah. In a sympathy message, he said Puttannaiah’s demise had come as a stun. “The State’s farmer’s development has lost an important leader,” he said and commented that he was tormented by the death of his long-lasting friend.