Katti Padma Rao (born 27 July 1953) is a Dalit poet, scholar and activist from Andhra Pradesh, India.

He is the founding general secretary of Dalit Mahasabha, a people's organisation that spearheaded the Dalit movement in Andhra Pradesh in the aftermath of the 1985 Karamchedu massacre in the coastal region of that state.

A scholar in both Telugu and Sanskrit, he has published several volumes of poetry, and books on sociology, religion, philosophy, history, and women's studies.

Following the Karamchedu massacre of Madiga Dalits in 1985, Rao emerged as a significant socio-political activist.

[citation needed] Rao is recognised as a Dalit ideologue,[2] intellectual,[3] writer and socio-political activist.