Lagadapati Rajagopal

Lagadapati Rajagopal
Member of Parliament
In office
22 May 2004 – 19 Feb 2014
Preceded by Gadde Ramamohan
Constituency Vijaywada
Personal details
Born 1964
Nellore, india
Political party Indian National Congress
Children 2 sons
Parents Lagadapati Ramanaidu
Lagadapati Ramalakshmamma
Residence Vijaywada
Alma mater V R Siddhartha Engineering College
Loyola Public School, Guntur
Profession Industrialist
Religion Hindu
Website Personal Website

Lagadapati Rajagopal (born 1964)[1] is an industrialist and former[2] politician. He was the 15th Lok Sabha MP from the Vijaywada constituency for Indian National Congress.[3][4] He resigned from Parliament and quit politics after the Telangana Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha.[2] Rajagopal is the principal shareholder of Lanco Infratech.[5][6]

History

He is the son of L. Ramalakshmamma and L.V. Rama Naidu,[7] a contractor.[1] He went into the family business after attending V R Siddhartha Engineering College, where he was suspended for 1 year.[1]

He married the daughter of politician P Upendra. He started two companies, one in the pig iron business and one in the power industry.[1]

In 2004, he ran for office in the Vijayawada district, the seat previously held by Upendra, and became a member of Parliament.[1] He has been a prominent anti-Telangana voice.[1] His company's headquarters have been moved to Delhi because the Hyderabad offices were deemed to be targets because of his anti-Telangana positions.[1]

On 13 February 2014, during a discussion of the Telangana Bill, L Rajagopal used pepper spray while on the floor which caused all the members of Parliament to vacate the building. He stated this was in "self-defence...I used the spray when I saw a colleague from a different party being manhandled".[8] He was suspended from Parliament by speaker Meira Kumar,[9] along with 4 other MPs.[10] Sharad Yadav, Janata Dal (United)'s President, called the actions "sedition".[10] Protests against his actions included burning Rajagopal in effigy, and a boycott by lawyers in Warangal district.[11]

He tendered his resignation from Parliament in February 2014.[2]

Committee positions

While in Parliament, he has been on the following Committees:

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Kingshuk Nag (Feb 14, 2014). "Lagadapati Rajagopal 'has no control over his temper' -". Indiatimes. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "'‘Pepper spray’ MP Lagadapati Rajagopal resigns from Lok Sabha'". HindustanTimes. February 18, 2014. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Congress MP Rajagopal to move SC against Telangana". The Hindu. 2013-10-04. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  4. ↑ "Congress MP Lagadapati Rajagopal attacks Sonia over AP bifurcation issue - Economic Times". Articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com. 2014-02-08. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  5. ↑ "AP Congress MP L Rajagopal resigns over Telangana decision". Ibnlive.in.com. 2013-10-21. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  6. ↑ "Lanco Infratech Limited". Lancogroup.com. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  7. ↑ "Detailed Profile - Shri Rajagopal Lagadapati - Members of Parliament (Lok Sabha) - Who's Who - Government: National Portal of India". Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  8. ↑ "Regret pepper spray incident, says Lagadapati Rajagopal, continues to attack Cong". Deccan Chronicle. 2014-02-14. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  9. ↑ "Government influenced the Speaker to suspend select MPs: Rajagopal-Lok Sabha Elections News - IBNLive Mobile". M.ibnlive.com. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Pepper spray leaves Lok Sabha - and nation - in tears". Business Standard. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "Widespread protests against ‘pepper attack’". Hindu. Retrieved 17 February 2014.

External links