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Three years on, NTR's family fights for his legacy

The differences in the Telugu Desam founder and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N T Rama Rao's family, came to the fore on his third death anniversary today, even as TDP president and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu dismissed the charge of his critics that the party was deviating from NTR's ideals under his stewardship.

The day witnessed family members coming in separate groups to NTR Ghat to pay floral tributes at his Samadhi. The rebel TDP MLA and third son of NTR, N Harikrishna, came to the Samadhi along with his four brothers -- Jai Krishna, Ramakrishna, Jai Shanker Krishna and Mohan Krishna -- and left after paying homage. Naidu, accompanied by his wife N Bhuvaneswari, came later.

Naidu and Harikrishna also separately garlanded the statue of the former chief minister at Rasoolpura, while Lakshmi Parvathi, president of NTR-TDP and wife of Rama Rao, unveiled another statue of the late leader at Padmaraonagar in Secunderabad after paying homage at NTR Ghat.

Harikrishna, who raised the banner of revolt last week against the TDP leadership by charging it with diluting NTR's welfare programmes, in an address to a rally after garlanding his father's statue, reiterated that he would continue his fight for the realisation of NTR's ideals .

Home Minister A Madhav Reddy, Minorities Welfare Minister Khaleel Bhasha, veteran film actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, chairman of Andhra Pradesh Film Development Corporation Murali Mohan and others were among those who paid floral tributes to the late leader at the Samadhi.

Speaking at a meeting organised by the NTR Memorial Trust, Naidu paid glowing tributes to the late leader who, he said, was instrumental in building an alternative to the Congress at the national level by launching the National Front.

Recalling several innovative welfare and developmental schemes initiated by Rama Rao, including the Rs 2 a kg rice programme, houses for poor, introduction of the Mandal report in the state, he said Rama Rao was a phenomenon and not an individual. Nobody could do away with the programmes launched by NTR, he said, and his government had not deviated from NTR's philosophy but had altered some schemes in tune with the changing times. Though the price of subsidised rice was hiked, it was costing the state exchequer Rs 8 billion annually. NTR had a special love for the weaker sections and his government was also bestowing special attention on them. A programme for providing modern tool kits to one million artisans in the state had been launched under the Adarana programme. The self help groups were also part of NTR's philosophy to empower the people.

Naidu reiterated that his party would carry on its fight uncompromisingly with the Congress and reiterated that his party was committed to protecting secularism. He said the support extended to the BJP-led coalition at the Centre was issue-based.

He said the NTR trust would strive to promote the ideologies of NTR and serve the poor.

He announced that a Telugu cultural museum and district cultural fund would be set up soon.

The ruling Telugu Desam and NTR-TDP also organised separate programmes to mark the occasion.

Harikrishna left for Mahbubnagar where he would distribute rice and saris to the poor.

UNI

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