H. C. Srikantaiah

H. C. Srikantaiah
H. C. Srikantaiah
Minister of Revenue; Government of Karnataka
	In office; 11 October 1999 – 28 May 2004
Chief Minister	S.M Krishna
Preceded by	D. Manjunath
Succeeded by	M.P Prakash
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
	In office; 2 December 1989 – 13 March 1991
Preceded by	H.N Nanje Gowda
Succeeded by	H.D Deve Gowda
Constituency	Hassan
Member of Karnataka Legislative Assembly for Shravanabelagola (Karnataka Assembly constituency)
	In office; 1972–1985
Preceded by	S. Shivappa
Succeeded by	N. Gangadhar
Constituency	Shravanabelagola
Member of Karnataka Legislative Assembly for Shravanabelagola
	In office; 1999–2004
Preceded by	C.S Putte Gowda
Succeeded by	C.S Putte Gowda
Constituency	Shravanabelagola
Member of Karnataka Legislative Council
	In office; 1986–1989
Personal details
Born	18 July 1926; Hirisave, Mysore State, British India
Died	12 March 2011 (aged 84); Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Resting place	Hirisave, Karnataka
Political party	Indian National Congress until 2009; Bharatiya Janata Party 2009-2011
Spouse	Late. Nagamma (m. 1948)
Children	3 Sons, 5 Daughters; H.S Chandru; H.S Ravi Kumar; H.S Vijay Kumar; H.S Prabha ; H.S Vasantha; H.S Indira; H.S Sudha; H.S Suma
Parent(s)	Late Patel Chowdegowda and Late Rangamma
Residence(s)	Bangalore, Karnataka
Nickname	Annaiah (Big Brother)

Hirisave Chowdegowda Srikantaiah (18 July 1926 - 12 March 2011) was an Indian politician with the Indian National Congress party and a Member of Parliament of 9th Lok Sabha.^[1] He was elected to Karnataka Legislative Assembly from Shravanabelagola assembly constituency in Hassan from 1972 to 1985 and from 1999 to 2004. He was a Minister in Government of Karnataka in cabinets of Devaraj Urs, Veerendra Patil and S.M Krishna holding portfolios such as Revenue, Urban Development, Forest, Minor Irrigation, Public Works and Municipal Administration.^[2]

Early life and family

H.C Srikantaiah was born in Hirisave village of Channarayapatna taluk in Hassan district of the erstwhile Mysore State (in present-day Karnataka). He married Nagamma in 1948. They had 3 sons and 5 daughters. He was from the Vokkaliga community in Karnataka.^[3] His eldest son H. S. Chandru died on 29 December 2020 in Bangalore. He was survived by son H. C. Lalithraghav and a daughter.^[4]

Political career

H.C Srikantaiah began his political career by winning as an independent candidate from Shravanabelagola assembly constituency in Hassan in 1972.^[5] He later joined Indian National Congress and won continuously until 1985. He was a member of Karnataka Legislative Assembly from 1972 to 1985 and from 1999 to 2004. Srikantaiah was a Minister in Karnataka for almost 20 years. In 1980 H.C Srikantaiah famously defected 84 MLA's from the Congress (U) to Congress (I) to form the Government in Karnataka thus ending Devraj Urs tenure as Chief Minister of Karnataka for the second term.^[6] Srikantaiah had a chance to become the Chief minister after the defection of the 84 MLA's but Gundu Rao was picked for the post by Sanjay Gandhi.^[7] He was the Minister for Cooperation in Gundu Rao ministry. After spending nearly four decades in the Indian National Congress, Srikantaiah joined the BJP ahead of 2009 Parliament elections.^[8]

Key Contributions

Abolition of Stamp Papers

The stamp paper piracy^[9] was one of the biggest scams in the recent history of the country which has caused huge losses beyond estimation to the state exchequer. The pioneering idea of abolishing the stamp papers^[10] and an alternative foolproof system was introduced by Sri. H.C Srikantaiah during his tenure of Revenue Minister.

Death

He died on 12 March 2011, at a private hospital in Bangalore after a prolonged illness. He was 85. He was cremated in his birthplace Hirisave village of Channarayapatna taluk in Hassan district with state honours.^[11]