Veteran Congressman and former Karnataka Minister for Higher Education, BA Mohideen passed away on Tuesday morning.

Mohideen (81), was admitted to a private hospital in Bengaluru a few days ago after reportedly suffering from an illness. He was a resident of Sanjaynagar in the city.

Mohideen, who hails from Bajpe near Mangaluru in Dakshina Kannada, graduated from Vijaya College in Bengaluru in 1961 before entering politics with the Congress party in 1969. He quickly rose through the Congress ranks and served as the General Secretary of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) under former Chief Minister Devaraj Urs from 1975 to 1980.

He was first elected to the state Legislative Assembly from Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada in 1978.

He was also a Member of the Legislative Council from 1990 to 2002 and was the Chief Whip in the Legislative Council from 1994 to 1995.

He later went on to become the Minister for Higher Education and Industry under Chief Minister JH Patil from 1995 to 1999 and was recognised by the state government for his service as an honest, upright statesman with the Devaraj Urs award in 2016.

"In his sad demise we have lost a  veteran leader. We remember him as one among the close companions of Devaraja Urs," read a statement from CM Kumaraswamy.

Mohideen was a champion of several causes ranging from literature to arts and the conservation of regional languages, especially the Beary language which he spoke fluently. He has chaired several meetings of the Karnataka Beary Sahitya Committee and had on several occasions aided the upliftment of Beary culture. He was also named 'Beary of the Century' by the Beary Welfare Association in Bengaluru.

His autobiography, Nannolagina Naanu (The Me Within Me) is set to be released soon.