J. Geeta Reddy

J. Geeta Reddy
Minister for Major Industries, Sugar, Commerce and Export Promotion, Government of Andhra Pradesh
In office
September 2009 - 2014
Personal details
Born 1947 (age 70–71)
Hyderabad State
Political party Indian National Congress
Spouse(s) Dr. Ramachandra Reddy
Children Meghana Reddy
Residence Hyderabad
Occupation gynaecologist

Dr. Jetti Geeta Reddy[lower-alpha 1] (born 1947) is an Indian politician of the Indian National Congress (INC) party. Since 2014, she has been a member of the Telangana Legislative Assembly, in which she represents Zahirabad constituency in Medak district.

Reddy has been a minister in the cabinets of various governments. She was also leader of the INC in the legislative assembly during the government of Konijeti Rosaiah.

Early life

Geeta Reddy is the daughter of Eshwari Bai,[1] a former Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and President of the Republican Party of India. She studied medicine at Osmania Medical College, Hyderabad and became a Member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, London in 1989.

Career

Reddy worked as a gynaecologist. She lived in Australia from 1971 to 1977, in London from 1977 to 1980 and in Saudi Arabia from 1980 to 1982. She then returned to India.

Political career

Reddy and her husband, Ramachandra Reddy, established a medical practice in Saudi Arabia. In 1985, upon the request of Rajiv Gandhi, the couple returned to India so that Geeta could work on behalf of the Indian National Congress party. She contested elections for the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 1989 and became MLA for Gajwel in Medak district. She won that constituency again in 1999 and 2004.[2]

In the 2009 elections, Reddy was parachuted into the Zahirabad constituency, which had elected INC candidates in every election bar one since 1957. Converted to a seat reserved for candidates from the Scheduled Castes,[3] the constituency had been held for a decade by the INC's Mohammed Fareeduddin, who commanded much local respect but was forced by this decision to contest the election elsewhere and lost. She won the seat and did so again in 2014, despite allegations that Fareeduddin had been encouraging his local supporters to vote for any party except the INC.[4] On this occasion, the election was for a seat in the newly created Telangana Legislative Assembly that was created as part of the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.

Reddy was a minister in the cabinets of Marri Chenna Reddy, Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy and Y. S. Rajasekhar Reddy. She was INC leader in the legislative assembly during the Rosaiah government.[5]


Member of Legislative Assembly

YearConstituencyPolitical Party
1989 Gajwel INC
2004 Gajwel INC
2009 Zahirabad INC
2014 Zahirabad INC

Portfolios held

  • 1989-1994: Minister for Tourism, Culture, Social Welfare, Sports, Secondary Education and Protocol.
  • 1995-1998: General Secretary, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC)
  • 1998-2000: Executive Member of PCC
  • 2000-2004: President, Andhra Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee.
  • 2004-2009: Minister for Tourism, Sugar and Major Industries commerce and Export promotion.
  • 2009–2010: Minister for Information and Public relations, Tourism, Culture, FDC, Archaeology, Museums & Archives, Cinematography.
  • 2010–2014: Minister for Major Industries, Sugar, Commerce and Export promotion

Reddy was also for some time around 2013 in charge of the Home department in the Andhra Pradesh government whilst also holding the Major Industries portfolio.[6] In the same year, the Telugu Desam Party had demanded that she be dismissed as a minister due to her being one of the co-accused named by the Central Bureau of Investigation in its work on a case relating to alleged illegal assets held by Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy.[7] The matter was dropped, with one of her co-accused, Mopidevi Venkataramana Rao, claiming that the Chief Minister, Kiran Kumar Reddy, had intervened.[8]

In April 2016, Reddy was appointed as chairman of the Telangana Legislative Assembly's Public Accounts Committee.[9]

Personal life

J. Geeta Reddy is married to Dr. Ramachandra Reddy.[10] Her husband owns Geetha Multi Speciality Hospital Secunderabad, Eashwari Bai Memorial Center Hospital, Eashwari Bai School Of Nursing and Eashwari Bai College Of Nursing. She has a daughter.[4]

Around 1980, after Reddy's husband had suffered a stroke and was not responding well to conventional medicine, the couple visited Sathya Sai Baba. She has expressed admiration for him, noting that her husband's health began to improve soon after the meeting,[10] and has been described as a devotee.[11]

Sports

  • President of Andhra Pradesh Women's Cricket Association

Social service

  • Vice President Indian Red Cross Society, Andhra Pradesh
  • Branch, Life Trustee, Indian Council of Child Welfare
  • Chairperson, Eashwari Bai Memorial Trust.
  • Former member of Central Social Welfare Board.
  • Former Senate member of Osmania University.

Awards

  • Mahila Shiromani
  • Unity award for National Integration Forum
  • 2008: Indira Gandhi Sadbhavana Award
  • 2008: Millennium Star Award
  • 2014: ALL Ladies League, Hyderabad Women of the Decade Achievers Award for Excellence in Public Administration[12]

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Her name is also spelled as Gita and Geetha

Citations

  1. ↑ "Profiles of new Ministers". The Hindu. 23 May 2004. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  2. ↑ "Geeta Reddy to be Leader of House". The Hindu. 7 December 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-12-14.
  3. ↑ "Zahirabad (SC) (Telangana) Assembly Constituency Elections". Infobase. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  4. 1 2 Menon, Meghna (28 April 2014). "Geetha confident of local support". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  5. ↑ "All-party meet held on free zone issue". The Hindu. 18 March 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-04-02.
  6. ↑ "Industry-friendly policies to continue post division: J Geeta Reddy". Business Standard. 12 August 2013. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  7. ↑ "Jagan Case: TDP demands dismissal of Geeta Reddy after CBI chargesheet". Indian Express. PTI. 18 September 2013. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  8. ↑ Sailaja, Seetha (16 November 2013). "Sparing Geeta Reddy CBI scapegoated Mopidevi?". Indian Herald.
  9. ↑ "Geeta Reddy appointed PAC chairperson". The Hindu. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  10. 1 2 "Why We Believed In Him". Tehelka. 7 May 2011. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  11. ↑ "Sai Baba's condition stable, say doctors". NDTV. 6 April 2011. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  12. ↑ "Andhra CM felicitated Women Achievers in Hyderabad". Women Economic Forum. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
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