Sanjivayya was a minister in the composite
Madras State. He was a member of the provisional parliament 1950–52. In 1962, Sanjivayya also became the first
Dalit leader from Andhra Pradesh to become Pradesh Congress Committee president. He was Minister of Labour and Employment under
Lal Bahadur Shastri between 9 June 1964 and 23 January 1966.
Chief Minister Sanjivayya was the first Dalit Chief Minister of an Indian state. He introduced pension system for widows, elderly people and established Lalitha Kala Academy in Andhra Pradesh. He was the youngest chief minister ever in India, he introduced the office of Anticorruption Bureau {ACB}, he completed the irrigation projects like Gajuladinne in Kurnool dist., Vamsadhara, Pulichintala and varadarajula swamy project near Atmakur in Kurnool dist. == Personal life ==