Mangaluru:  Former Karnataka Higher Education Minister B.A. Moideen passed away at a hospital in Bengaluru yesterday. He was 81.

Born to Abdul Khader and Haleema at Pejawar in Bajpe village in May 1938, Moideen joined Congress in 1969 and held various positions in the party before getting elected to Karnataka Legislative Assembly in 1978 from Bantwal Assembly constituency in Dakshina Kannada district. However, he was denied party ticket to contest subsequent elections following which he joined Janata Dal in the later days.

Moideen was a member of the Legislative Council for two terms, from 1990 to 2002. He was the Minister for Higher Education in the J.H. Patel government between 1995 and 1999, when he earned the name of an honest administrator. He rejoined the Congress later. Moideen, a staunch follower of D. Devaraj Urs, was conferred with the Devaraj Urs Award instituted by the State Government in 2016.

Moideen’s autobiography, ‘Nannolagina Naanu’ (Me within Me) was to be released shortly. Though he was reluctant to pen down his life, two writers, Muhammad Kulai and B.A. Muhammad Ali, coaxed him to do so and wrote the book.