Amaravati: Veteran Telugu stage and film actor Jayaprakash Reddy died of heart attack at his residence in Guntur on Tuesday. He was 74 and survived by wife and a son, family sources said. He collapsed inside the bathroom on Tuesday morning and breathed his last.

Jayaprakash Reddy, popularly known as JP, began his career as a school teacher. His passion for acting drove him towards the stage and he played varied roles in countless dramas. He then attracted the attention of Telugu film industry and a variety of roles came his way.

Be it a hardcore villain or a comedian, JP fit into the roles with effortless ease and enthralled the audience. As a villain, he earned a unique identity speaking the Rayalaseema accent of Telugu, a novelty that became his USP and elevated the typical 'Seema' factionist.

JP acted in more than 100 films along side the top heroes of Telugu films like Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Pawan Kalyan and Mahesh Babu. He also acted in a few movies in Kannada and Tamil.

His last film was 'Sarileru Neekevvaru' in Telugu, produced by Anil Sunkara.

Though busy as a movie actor, JP never quit the theatre and actively continued playing roles in stage dramas. He performed a monologue as Alexander and won wide appreciation.

He also started the JP's Monthly Drama Sabha In Guntur city and encouraged theatre.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu, film personalities and others expressed grief over JP's demise.

"Jayaprakash created a special place for himself in the film land through his inimitable dialogue delivery and mannerisms," the Chief Minister said in a statement. Chandrababu Naidu said JP's death was a deep loss to the Telugu film industry.

"Telugu theatre has lost a father-figure," he added. They extended sympathies to the bereaved family.

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Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday slammed former Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, alleging that he had removed the fear of the law from politicians who defected from parties in Maharashtra.

Raut claimed that by not deciding on the disqualification petitions, Chandrachud kept doors and windows open for defections.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader's statement comes after his party faced a severe drubbing in the state assembly elections, as it managed to clinch only 20 out of 95 seats it contested as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

The performance of the party's alliance partners was no better, with the Congress winning only 16 out of 101 seats and NCP (SP) getting only 10 out of 86 seats it contested.

Talking to reporters, Raut alleged, "He (Chandrachud) has removed the fear of the law from defectors. His name will be written in black letters in history."

Following the split in the undivided Shiv Sena in 2022, the party's faction headed by Uddhav Thackeray filed petitions in the Supreme Court on the disqualification of party MLAs who defected along with Eknath Shinde. The apex court put the onus on the assembly Speaker to decide on the disqualification petitions, which he did earlier this year, declaring the Sena bloc led by Shinde as the “real political party”.

Raut alleged that the results of the assembly election were pre-decided. If the then CJI had decided on the disqualification petitions on time, the outcome would have been different.

"We are sad but not disappointed. We will not leave the fight incomplete. Division of votes was also a factor, and the RSS played an important role in the election. The poisonous campaign impacted us negatively," he said.

He said the swearing-in ceremony for the new government should be held in neighbouring Gujarat.

Meanwhile, in his weekly column "Rokhthok" in the party mouthpiece "Saamana", the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader claimed that it was time to offer condolences to the Election Commission, which turned a blind eye to the use of money power.

"The courts have been in the ICU for a long time," he alleged.