Former minister Vaijanath Patil no more

Kalaburgi: Former minister and president of Hyderabad Karnataka Horata Samithi Vaijanath Patil breathed his last at a private hospital in Bengaluru on Saturday due to prolonged illness. He was 82.

He is survived by wife, three sons and two daughters, family sources said.

Hailing from Bidar, the octogenarian leader was suffering from age-related health problems for quite some time.

In his political career spanning about 60 years, he had served as a minister in the Ramakrishna Hegde government as well as H D Deve Gowda government in Karnataka.

Patil would be remembered for his role in agitations for the special status to the Hyderabad-Karnataka region under Article 371 of the constitution.

The former minister had once resigned from the ministerial post accusing the government of not addressing the plight of people in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region.

Condoling his death, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said Vaijanath Patil had dedicated his life for the development of Kalyana Karnataka, as Hyderabad-Karnataka region is referred to.

“I am deeply saddened by the demise of Vaijanath Patil. He played a crucial role in obtaining special status to Kalyana Karnataka with inclusion of article 371 (j) to the Constitution.

He had great concerns about the development of Kalyana Karnataka region,” Yediyurappa said.

The Chief Minister recalled his contribution as a legislator and two time Minister- horticulture Minister in Ramakrishna Hegde Government and Urban development Minister in Devegowda Government.

In his condolence message, Deve Gowda said, “I am pained to hear the demise of Vaijanath Patil. He had served as a minister when I was the chief minister.”

Former chief minister Siddaramaiah too condoled the demise of Patil.

In his message, he said, “The death of Patil has deeply pained me. He played a crucial role in granting special status to Hyderabad-Karnataka region.