TURA: Admiral K Sangma, former minister and legislator and uncle of Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, passed away in his native place in Purakhasia on Saturday morning.
A cancer survivor, Admiral Sangma was admitted to the intensive care unit of Tura Civil Hospital last week a heart condition.
With no sign of improvement in the hospital, his family took him home in Babelapara in Purakhasia where he breathed his last.
Both Admiral K Sangma and Gopinath K Sangma were elder brothers of Soradini K Sangma, wife of Late P A Sangma.
His political career spanned more than a decade and began with the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council where he was first elected as an MDC from Babelapara constituency of Purakhasia.
Later, he along with his elder brother Gopinath K Sangma went on to become legislators and ministers in successive Congress governments.
Sangma was elected as a legislator to the Meghalaya Assembly for two straight consecutive times in 1993 and 1998.
He held several portfolios including minister of PWD, Agriculture, Soil Conservation, among others.
During his ministerial tenure and under the guidance of Late P A Sangma, Gambegre became a development block.
When P A Sangma formed the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) with Sharad Pawar and Tariq Anwar following their expulsion from the Congress, Admiral joined hands with his brother-in-law along with several other Congress legislators in the state. He was defeated from the new Gambegre assembly constituency by Congress candidate and current legislator Saleng A Sangma in 2008.
