Telangana Minister Takes Back The Remarks On Samantha-Naga's Divorce

Telangana Minister's Remarks On Samantha-Naga's Divorce

Telangana minister Konda Surekha backtracked from her statement against the regional film industry and the divorce of actresses Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Naga Chaitanya this Thursday, describing her comments as ‘slip-off-tongue’. But she maintained her words used against senior BRS leader KT Rama Rao also known as KTR.

In replying to the huge row over her recent comments, she said the following; “I don’t harbour any personal vendetta against anyone. It was therefore said off the cuff. It was a slip of the tongue. It saddens me that people respond so viciously to a statement like that. However the remarks made on KTR, I will not take back.” He should instead apologise. I will also reply to the defamation notice in a legal manner as well."

The statement comes a few hours after KTR the president of the TRS party and minister KT Rama Rao has served Telangana minister Konda Surekha with a legal notice. In the said notice, Rao threatened that Surekha should withdraw the said statement with a public apology within 24 hours. He also threatened legal action in the form of defamation and criminal cases against those who do not adhere to his instructions regarding Surekha. The former minister further accused Surekha of using the names of the leading icons in the south Indian glamour world for her political mileage.

The BRS, however, termed Pawan Kalyan’s remarks about KTR as “uncouth”, “cheap, and disgusting”. At the same time, sitting actor Nagarjuna’s family and the film chamber Telugu are all preparing to file a complaint against the minister.

Samantha Ruth Prabhu reacted to Telangana minister’s shocking allegations and earlier took to Instagram to post a deserving reply, ‘to live as women… to work… get a job… to live life in the big, bad cruel world of the glamour industry where women are used more often as show pieces; to love and break up, to get up and fight.’ It requires a lot of courage and strength she said. Turning directly to Konda Surekha, Samantha said, “Konda Surekha Garu,” I am proud of what this journey made of me—do not demean it. I hope you understand that when you do that, your words creates an impact as a minister. Samantha too, was direct on what she needed from people; to cease in embarrassing her with more gory details of divorce. Divorce is a very personal experience, and I would like for you to cease speaking about mine. While our decision to make things private does not call for distortion. To clarify: I did not engage in any political elimination and my divorce was consent based. It may be possible to achieve the decontextualization of the self and banish one’s name from political struggle? I have always remained non-political and wish to continue doing so.

”Naga Chaitanya took a firm stand against Konda Surekha’s claims, addressing the minister directly in his post: “Today, what Minister Konda Surekha Garu said is not only a lie but completely ridiculous and intolerable.” He also said that such statements bring emotional stress not only to the concerned individuals but also to the ongoing distortion of celebrities’ life. It is about time that women receive respect and support that they require.” The minister should also be more careful with what she says and there is no reason to make gains out of someone’s personal life choices and decisions for the headlines.”

In response to these controversial claims,  actor Nagarjuna Akkineni has also come forward to strongly reject the accusations. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Nagarjuna expressed his displeasure over the personal attack on his family. He wrote, “I strongly condemn the remarks made by Honourable Minister Mrs. Konda Surekha. It is inappropriate to involve the personal lives of film stars, who stay away from politics, to attack your political opponents. I urge you to respect others’ privacy. As a woman in a position of responsibility, your statements and accusations against our family are baseless and irrelevant. I request that you take back your comments immediately.”