Hyderabad, Nov 12 Telangana Endowment and Forest Minister Konda Surekha has withdrawn her statement about popular actor Nagarjuna and his family.
Facing a defamation case filed by the actor last year, the minister took to 'X' to clarify that the statement she made was not intended to hurt him or his family member.
"I would wish to clarify that the statement I had made in relation to Nagarjuna Garu was not intended to hurt Nagarjuna Garu or his family members. I had no intention of hurting or defaming Akkineni Nagarjuna Garu or his family members," the minister said.
"I regret any unintended impression given in my statements in relation to them and withdraw the same," she added.
The minister had made the controversial statement on October 2 last year, blaming Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K. T. Rama Rao (KTR) for the divorce between Nagarjuna's actor son Naga Chaitanya and actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu.
Following the minister's remarks, Samantha issued a statement clarifying that her divorce was with mutual consent.
She urged the minister not to trivialise her journey and to be responsible and respectful of individuals' privacy.
Konda Surekha later posted on 'X' that she was withdrawing her comments. The minister said that her comments were not meant to hurt her sentiments but to question a leader's belittling of women.
However, Nagarjuna filed a petition in a city court under Section 356 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
He stated that the minister's remarks harmed his family's dignity and reputation.
Nagarjuna had said that the minister had made disrespectful comments about his family, particularly regarding the divorce of his son, Naga Chaitanya, from Samantha.
The actor complained that Konda Sureskha’s remarks tarnished his family’s reputation, which has been built over decades through their work in the film industry and social service initiatives.
Though KTR had issued a legal notice asking the minister to retract her statement and apologise, she said she was standing by her comments about the BRS leader.
Following this, KTR also initiated defamation proceedings against the minister.
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