Marpadi Veerappa Moily (born 12 January 1940) is an Indian politician belonging to the Indian National Congress from the state of Karnataka.
Veerappa Moily was born in a Tulu-speaking family in Marpadi Village, Moodbidri erstwhile South Canara. He belongs to the Devadiga community. He did his B.A. from Government College (now known as University College) situated at Hampankatta in Mangalore city. He completed his B.L. from University Law College, Bengaluru
Moily was the former Chief Minister (and the first ethnic Tuluva CM) of the Indian state of Karnataka (19 Nov 1992 – 11 Dec 1994). He was elected to Karnataka state legislative assembly from the Karkala constituency of the Udupi district.
Moily who is a lawyer by profession, 2014, opened a law firm called Moily Law Associates.
From 2009 to 2019, he represented the Chikballapur constituency in Lok Sabha. But he lost in 2019 to a BJP candidate when BJP won 25 seats out of 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka. He was the former Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister of Corporate Affairs and Minister of Power in the Indian government.
He is also currently serving as the All India Congress Committee General Secretary in charge of Andhra Pradesh. He is regarded as one of the senior members of the Congress Party, and a close adviser for the Congress Leader Sonia Gandhi.
Law Minister Mr. M. Veerappa Moily has written a book “The Edge of Time”. It is a Kannada novel Tembare that examines, a complex cultural practice of coastal Karnataka, called bhutaradhane, or the worship of hero spirits. The Pambada community, a marginalized dalit community, has as its hereditary profession, spirit impersonation during elaborate rituals.
Mr. Moily is an advocate by profession, he entered politics about four decades ago and he became the chief minister of Karnataka in the year 1992.
He presented the Karnataka State Budgets for 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1980–81, 1981–82 & 1982–83. He formulated and implemented various drinking water schemes and employment guarantee schemes and housing schemes. He initiated various projects such as the International Airport in Bangalore, International Convention Centre, Konkan Railway, and National Games in Bangalore.
Moily is a literary figure of some note. He has served as a regular columnist for The Hindu and Deccan Herald (both English-language newspapers) and for Samyukta Karnataka (a Kannada newspaper).
Veerappa Moily is also writing another epic poem on Draupadi and the title is “Shrimudi Parikranam”. In an interview with Bar & Bench, he said: “This is how I go on writing, it is an unstoppable journey”. The following is a list of the awards Moily has received:
- 2000 – Ameen Sadbhavana Award
- 2001 – Devaraj Urs Prashasthi
- 2001 – Aryabhatta award
- 2007 – Moortidevi Award for Shri Ramayana Mahanveshanam
- 2014 – Saraswati Samman for Shri Ramayana Mahanveshanam
- 2021 – Sahitya Akademi Award for the epic Sri Bahubali Ahimsadigvijayam
