Purandeswari calls Naidu's bluff

Evidence shows he was invited:A Anita Saluja New Delhi: Union Minister D Purandeswari succeeded in calling the bluff of TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu on the issue of extending the invite for the function of unveiling of the statue of N T Rama Rao in Parliament House. The TDP MPs, who cried hoarse over Naidu not getting the invite for the function slated for Tuesday, were shown the "acknowledgment" receipts of the invite sent by the Union Minister, which was received by both Naidu and his wife N Bhuvaneshwari, which was also accessed by this correspondent. Interestingly, the TDP MPs, who met Speaker Meira Kumar on Monday, complained that their leader, who is the President of the party founded by the late NTR, besides being his son-in-law, cannot be ignored. The TDP MPs found fault with the Speaker's office for not sending the invitation to their leader. However, when copies of the invite sent by Purandeswari, along with the acknowledgement receipts, were shown to them by the Speaker's Secretariat, they had no answer. Pushed on the backfoot, the TDP MPs finally said their leader N Chandrababu Naidu will attend the function. Talking to The Hans India, Lok Sabha Secretary-General T K Vishwanathan explained that the Speaker never sends an invite to any political leader. A bulletin is issued by the Secretariat, extending the invite to all the MPs. It is up to the host of the function to send invitations to whomsoever he/she likes. The invites are sent by the Speaker only to the President and the Vice-President, if she so desires. This correspondent tried to talk to the Speaker, but she refused to be drawn into the controversy. Side-stepping the row over the invite, TDP Parliamentary Party leader Nama Nageshwar Rao informed that the TDP MPs, along with their leader Chandrababu Naidu, will be attending the function in Parliament on Tuesday. Nama Nageshwar Rao said that he met the Speaker thrice on Monday and an "official from her office" called-up their leader Naidu, inviting him to attend the function. It is at his invite that Naidu would be attending the function. For political reasons, TDP, could not have afforded to miss the function. When Speaker Meira Kumar unveils the statue of NTR in the Waiting Hall No 6 near Gate No 12 near the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, it will be a proud day for Andhra Pradesh. NTR, who was the reigning star of the Telugu Cinema, later joined politics and within nine months of launching the TDP in 1982, stormed to power in Andhra Pradesh in 1983, dislodging the Congress Government . Later, NTR took initiative for organising Opposition conclaves and went on to become Chairman of National Front Chairman, which dislodged Rajiv Gandhi Government in 1989 and brought the BJP and Left Front-backed National Front Government led by V P Singh to power.