E.M. Sudarsana Nachiappan, former Union minister and senior congress leader, passes away at 79
Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader E.M. Sudarsana Nachiappan has passed away at age 79 following a brief illness. He served in various parliamentary roles and as a minister in the Manmohan Singh government.
Why it matters
Marks the passing of a long-serving Indian politician who held significant roles in the Congress party and national government.
Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister E.M. Sudarsana Nachiappan passed away in Sivaganga on Thursday (September 17, 2026) following a brief illness. He was 79.
A Congressman since 1969, Mr. Nachiappan rose through the ranks from his early days as the Singampunari Regional Youth Congress president to become the vice-president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) in 2002. He also served as the party whip in Parliament.
Before making his mark in national politics, he gained widespread attention in the 1999 Lok Sabha elections by winning the Sivaganga parliamentary seat against senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram when the latter was in the Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC). He served as the Congress Lok Sabha member from the Sivaganga constituency from 1999 to 2004 and as a Rajya Sabha member from 2004 to 2016.
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