President Murmu to unveil Rs 100 NTR coin today

Vijayawada: A new controversy is now in the making. While the Nandamuri and Nara family have reached New Delhi to participate in the release of Rs 100 coin by President Droupadi Murmu on Monday to commemorate his birth centenary, NTR’s second wife N Lakshmi Parvati had made a last-minute effort to register her protest for not being invited for the ceremony.

Lakshmi Parvati in her complaint to the President alleged that invitations were given to all members of the NTR family, including TDP president Nara Chandrababu Naidu, who had conspired with the family members and snatched power from NTR though the latter had won 226 out of 294 seats in the Assembly elections in 1994. Lakshmi Parvati said she was legally married to NTR on September 11, 1993, and had actively participated in the 1994 Assembly elections.

She said inviting those very family members who were responsible for NTR’s death for the prestigious function while ignoring the legitimate heir had caused surprise and depression for her. However, there has been no response from Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Political circles here feel that it was the state BJP president and the daughter of NTR Daggubati Purandeswari who had put in all efforts to see that the Centre decides to issue the Rs 100 coin in memory of NTR. She was also closely associated in the design of the coin.

The NTR family and TDP have also been demanding that the Central government confer Bharat Ratna on NTR. Hence, the Union government had invited the Nandamuri and Nara families. In fact, the split in the TDP was the result of NTR marrying Lakshmi Parvati and her interference in the affairs of the party, TDP leaders claim.

Lakshmi Parvati is now a member of the YSRCP, and this could also be one of the reasons for not inviting her, the BJP sources say.