Senior Congress leader Shamanur Shivashankarappa no more

DAVANAGERE, BENGALURU: Senior Congress leader and former minister Shamanur Shivashankarappa passed away at a private hospital in Bengaluru on Sunday. He was 94 years old and had been suffering from age-related illnesses. He was the oldest serving MLA in the country and had been a prominent figure in Karnataka politics for over five decades.

Shamanur Shivashankarappa was born on June 16, 1931, in Davanagere district to Shamanur Kallappa and Shamanur Savitramma. He is survived by his wife Parvathamma, four daughters — Dr Manjula Shivashankar, Sudha Patil, Dr Shailaja Bhattacharya and Meena Dr Sharan Patil, and three sons — S S Bakkesha, S S Ganesh and S S Mallikarjun.

ಮಾಜಿ ಸಚಿವರು, ಶಾಸಕರು, ಅಖಿಲ ಭಾರತ ವೀರಶೈವ ಲಿಂಗಾಯಿತ ಮಹಾಸಭಾದ ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರೀಯ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರು ಹಾಗೂ ಪಕ್ಷದ ಹಿರಿಯ ನಾಯಕರು ಆದ ಶಾಮನೂರು ಶಿವಶಂಕರಪ್ಪ ಅವರ ನಿಧನವಾರ್ತೆ ನೋವುಂಟುಮಾಡಿದೆ.
ತಮ್ಮ ಸುದೀರ್ಘ ಸಾರ್ವಜನಿಕ ಜೀವನದಲ್ಲಿ ಅಪವಾದ, ಆರೋಪಗಳಿಂದ ದೂರವಿದ್ದು, ಸಿಕ್ಕ ಅಧಿಕಾರವನ್ನು ಜನಕಲ್ಯಾಣಕ್ಕಾಗಿಯೇ ಮುಡುಪಿಟ್ಟಿದ್ದ ಮುತ್ಸದ್ದಿ ನಾಯಕನ… pic.twitter.com/Dqa5UA2AJY

— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) December 14, 2025

Shivashankarappa entered politics in 1969 as a member of the Davanagere Municipal Corporation. He served as the president of the undivided Chitradurga district Congress from 1971 to 1973. He was first elected as an MLA in 1994 and went on to win six terms, serving as a minister in the Siddaramaiah cabinet in 2013.

ಮಾಜಿ ಸಚಿವರು, ಶಾಸಕರು, ಅಖಿಲ ಭಾರತ ವೀರಶೈವ ಲಿಂಗಾಯತ ಮಹಾಸಭಾದ ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರೀಯ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರು ಹಾಗೂ ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್‌ ಪಕ್ಷದ ಹಿರಿಯ ನಾಯಕರಾದ ಶ್ರೀ ಶಾಮನೂರು ಶಿವಶಂಕರಪ್ಪ ಅವರ ನಿಧನದ ಸುದ್ದಿ ಕೇಳಿ ಅತೀವ ದುಃಖವಾಯಿತು. ಸಮಾಜ ಸೇವೆಗಾಗಿ ತಮ್ಮ ಜೀವನವನ್ನೇ ಮುಡಿಪಾಗಿಟ್ಟ ಶಿವಶಂಕರಪ್ಪನವರು ಶೈಕ್ಷಣಿಕ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರಕ್ಕೆ ವಿಶೇಷ ಕೊಡುಗೆ ನೀಡಿದ್ದರು. ಅವರ… pic.twitter.com/432ygHGNIP

— DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) December 14, 2025

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who had recently visited him at the hospital, expressed his condolences, saying, “I’m deeply saddened by the passing away of Shamanur Shivashankarappa. My condolences to his family. May his soul rest in peace”.

The Congress party has expressed its sorrow and extended its condolences to the family of the deceased. Other leaders and officials have also expressed their condolences, including Congress leaders and workers from Davangere, who had been praying for his recovery.