Somanahalli Mallaiah Krishna (born 1 May 1932) is an Indian politician who served as Minister of External Affairs of India from 2009 to October 2012. He was the 16th

Chief Minister of Karnataka The chief minister of Karnataka, formerly known as the chief minister of Mysore, is the chief executive officer of the government of the Indian state of Karnataka. As per the Constitution of India, the governor of Karnataka is the state's ''de j ...

from 1999 to 2004 and the 19th

Governor of Maharashtra The governor of Maharashtra is the ceremonial head of the state of Maharashtra. The Constitution of India confers the executive powers of the state to the governor, however the de facto executive powers lie with the Council of Ministers. Bhagat ...

from 2004 to 2008. SM Krishna had served as the Speaker of the Karnataka Vidhan Sabha from December 1989 to January 1993. He was also a member of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha at various times from 1971 to 2014.

Early life and education

S. M. Krishna is son of S.C. Mallaiah. He was born to a

Vokkaliga Vokkaliga (also transliterated as Vokkaligar, Vakkaliga, Wakkaliga, Okkaligar, Okkiliyan) is a community, or a group of closely-related castes, from the Indian state of Karnataka. They are also present in the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu. As ...

family in a village named Somanahalli in the Maddur Taluk of

Mandya district Mandya District is an administrative district of Karnataka, India. The district is bordered on the south by Mysore district, Mysore and Chamarajanagar district, Chamarajangar districts, on the west by Hassan District, on the north by Tumkur Di ...

, Karnataka. He completed his Bachelor of Arts from

Maharaja's College, Mysore Maharaja's College, Mysore (1889) is a college affiliated to Mysore University. History The college finds its origins in the English-school known as "Maharaja Patashala" established by Maharaja of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wadiyar III in 1833, at t ...

and obtained a law degree from

University Law College The University Law College, Bangalore University, popularly known as ULC - Bangalore, is a legal education institution located in the city of Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. Administration Bangalore University ULC is administered and maintaine ...

, which was then known as Government Law College in

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. Krishna studied in the United States, graduating from the

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

, Texas and

The George Washington University Law School The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest top law school in the national capital. GW Law offers the largest range of cour ...

in Washington D.C, where he was a

Fulbright Scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

. Soon after his return to India, he was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly in 1962.

Personal life

He is married to Prema. They have two daughters. His daughter Malavika Krishna was married to the Late

V. G. Siddhartha Veerappa Gangaiah Siddhartha Hegde ( – 29 July 2019) was an Indian businessman from Karnataka. He was the founder of the cafe chain Café Coffee Day and served as its chairman and managing director. He also served on the board of directors of ...

, a businessman and the founder of

Cafe Coffee Day A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

. At the dawn of his political life, he released his biography "Smritivahini" in the presence of many dignitaries. He has penned many interesting incidents including

Veerappan Koose Munisamy Veerappan (18 January 1952 – 18 October 2004) was an Indian bandit turned domestic terrorist who was active for 36 years, and kidnapped major politicians for ransom. He was charged with sandalwood smuggling and poaching o ...

Kidnapping of Rajkumar Kannada film actor Rajkumar was abducted by Indian dacoit Veerappan on July 30, 2000, during the course of an armed attack on a farmhouse belonging to the actor in Gajanur, Tamil Nadu, India. Rajkumar was released by Veerappan on November 15, ...

during his tenure as the chief minister. He has also quoted that the former prime minister of India and national president of

Janata Dal (Secular) The Janata Dal (Secular) is an Indian political party led by former prime minister of India, H. D. Deve Gowda. The party is recognized as a State Party in the states of Karnataka, Kerala and Arunachal Pradesh. It was formed in July 1999 by the ...

H. D. Devegowda had strong plans of joining

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

twice during the period of National emergency.

Political career

Krishna started his electoral political career in the year 1962 by winning Maddur Vidhana Sabha seat as an independent, defeating the prominent politician from

K V Shankar Gowda for whom

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

had campaigned

Then he joined Praja Socialist Party, but lost from Maddur in 1967 to Congress' M M Gowda. He won the by-poll for

Mandya (Lok Sabha constituency) Mandya Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 28 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Karnataka state in southern India. This constituency covers the entire Mandya district ( ಮಂಡ್ಯ ) and part of Mysore district. Vidhan Sabha seg ...

in 1968 when the sitting MP died, defeating the Congress nominee. In 1968 he was influential in reconciliation between members of the Indian National Congress and Praja Socialist Party. He served three terms as an MP from the

Mandya Mandya is a city in the state of Karnataka. It is the headquarter of Mandya district and is located from Mysore and from Bangalore. Sugar factories contribute to the major economic output. It is also called Sugar city (which in Kannada mean ...

constituency of Karnataka starting from 1968 by-poll as a socialist. His next two terms were as a Congressman, winning elections in 1971 and 1980. Mandya has remained a Congress stronghold, represented in Lok Sabha later by his political proteges like Ambareesh and

Divya Spandana Divya Spandana (born 29 November 1982), better known by her screen name Ramya, is an Indian actress and politician. She served as the Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha from Mandya, Karnataka. She primarily works in Kannada, alongside Tami ...

(also known as Ramya). S M Krishna resigned from Lok Sabha in 1972, and became MLC in Karnataka and was appointed a minister by Devaraj Urs. After he went back to Lok Sabha in 1980
and
he served as minister under

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...

between 1983–84. He lost from Mandya Lok Sabha seat in 1984, and it is unclear if he served as a minister between 1984 and 1985 under

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to beco ...

. Later, he became a member of the Rajya Sabha in the years 1996 and 2006. He was member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and council at different times. Between 1989 and 1993 he was Speaker of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1993 to 1994. In 1999, as

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (or Karnataka PCC) is the unit of the Indian National Congress for the state of Karnataka. Its head office is situated at the ''Congress Bhawan'', Queens Road, Bangalore. Electoral performance Karnataka L ...

president, he led his party to victory in the assembly polls and took over as Chief Minister of Karnataka, a post he held until 2004. He was also instrumental in creating power reforms with ESCOMS and digitization of land records (BHOOMI) and many other citizen friendly initiatives. He encouraged private public participation and was a fore bearer of the Bangalore Advance Task Force. He later became the Governor of Maharashtra. Krishna resigned as Governor of Maharashtra on 5 March 2008. It was reported that this was due to his intention to return to active politics in Karnataka. President

Pratibha Patil Prathibha DeviSingh Patil (born 19 December 1934) is an Indian politician and lawyer who served as the 12th president of India spanning from 2007 to 2012. She is the first woman to become the president of India. A member of the Indian National ...

accepted his resignation on 6 March. Krishna entered the

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...

and subsequently took the oath of office as Union Cabinet Minister of External Affairs in the Council of Ministers under Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...

on 22 May 2009. In his tenure as the external affairs minister, he visited a number of countries including

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

in 2012 to strengthen economic and energy ties. Krishna resigned as External Affairs Minister on 26 October 2012 indicating a return to Karnataka state politics. Krishna resigned as a member of INC on 29 January 2017 quoting that the party was in a "state of confusion" on whether it needed mass leaders or not. He also complained of having been sidelined by the party and that the party was "dependent on managers and not time-tested people like imself. After speculations on his joining the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

, he formally joined the party in March 2017.

Positions held

* Member of 3rd

Karnataka Legislative Assembly The Karnataka Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral legislature of the Indian state of Karnataka. Karnataka is one of the six states in India where the state legislature is bicameral, comprising two houses. The two houses ar ...

, 1962–67, from Maddur. But lost in 1967 on PSP ticket. * Member, Indian Parliamentary Delegation to Commonwealth * Parliamentary Conference,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, 1965 * Member,

4th Lok Sabha List of Members of the 4th Lok Sabha (4 March 1967 – 27 December 1970), elected February–March 1967. The Lok Sabha (House of the People) is the lower house in the Parliament of India.13 sitting members from Rajya Sabha were elected to 4th ...

1968–1971, Socialist MP from Mandya after a by-poll when sitting MP died in 1967. * Member,

5th Lok Sabha List of Members of the 5th Lok Sabha, ( 15 March 1971 — 18 January 1977) elected February–March 1971.The term of the House was extended two times by one year at a time. However, the House was dissolved after having been in existence for a ...

1971–1972, Congress candidate from

* Member,

Karnataka Legislative Council The Karnataka Legislative Council is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of Karnataka state in South Western India. Karnataka is one of the six states in India, where the state legislature is bicameral, comprising two houses: the Leg ...

1972–1977 * Minister for Commerce & Industries & Parliamentary Affairs,

Government of Karnataka The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...

1972–77 * Member,

7th Lok Sabha List of Members of the 7th Lok Sabha, (18 January 1980 – 31 December 1984) elected December 1979 – January 1980. The Lok Sabha (House of the People) is the lower house in the Parliament of India nine sitting members from Rajya Sabha were el ...

1980–1984, from Mandya. But lost 1984 Lok Sabha election. * Member, Indian Delegation to the United Nations, 1982 * Union Minister of State for Industry during 1983–1984 * Union Minister of State for Finance during 1984–1985 * Member, 9th Karnataka Legislative Assembly 1989–1994 * Speaker,

1989–93 * Delegate to Commonwealth Parliamentary Seminar at Westminster, UK in March 1990 * Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, 1993–1994 * Elected to

in April 1996 *

October 1999 – 2004 (MLA from Maddur) * Re-elected to Karnataka Legislative Assembly: 2004 (Chamrajpet constituency) * Governor, Maharashtra: 2004–2008 * Member, Rajya Sabha from Karnataka 2008–2014 * External Affairs Minister, Government of India: 22 May 2009 to 26 October 2012.

References

External links

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Krishna, S. M. 1932 births Chief Ministers of Karnataka Deputy Chief Ministers of Karnataka George Washington University Law School alumni Governors of Maharashtra 20th-century Indian lawyers Kannada people Living people Ministers for External Affairs of India People from Mandya district Southern Methodist University alumni Speakers of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly University Law College, Bangalore University alumni Maharaja's College, Mysore alumni Rajya Sabha members from Karnataka India MPs 1971–1977 India MPs 1980–1984 Lok Sabha members from Karnataka Chief ministers from Indian National Congress Ramakrishna Mission schools alumni Indian National Congress politicians from Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Karnataka Mysore MLAs 1962–1967 Members of the Mysore Legislature Karnataka MLAs 1989–1994 Karnataka MLAs 2004–2007 Independent politicians in India Praja Socialist Party politicians