Daughter turned away from Mudragada’s bier; State honours for last rites today

B. Kranthi, daughter of Kapu leader Mudragada Padmanabham, is escorted away after family members objected to her paying her last respects to her father, at Kirlampudi in Kakinada district on Wednesday. Screengrab | Kranthi, from paying her last respects at Kirlampudi in Kakinada district on Wednesday (July 15, 2026).The family members, including Mr. Padmanabham’s brother Suribabu, confronted Ms. Kranthi as she proceeded towards her father’s mortal remains. She was escorted by police personnel to have a glimpse of the body. Amid the tension and slogans against her presence, the police asked Ms. Kranthi to leave the spot and sent her back to her vehicle.B. Kranthi, daughter of Kapu leader Mudragada Padmanabham, is escorted away by the police after family members objected to her paying homage to her father, at Kirlampudi in Kakinada district on Wednesday. Video: Special Arrangement pic.twitter.com/mh61CZumfn— The Hindu - Andhra Pradesh (@THAndhra) July 15, 2026In the run-up to the 2024 general elections, Ms. Kranthi had opposed her father’s decision to join the YSR Congress Party. She campaigned for the Jana Sena Party when Mr. Padmanabham vowed to defeat Jana Sena Party president K. Pawan Kalyan in the Pithapuram Assembly constituency. During that campaign, Mr. Padmanabham had declared publicly that he would never see her face again.State honoursAndhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday morning announced that the last rites of Mr. Padmanabham would be performed with State honours at Kirlampudi. Leaders cutting across party lines are arriving at Kirlampudi to pay homageVeteran Kapu leader Mudragada Padmanabham passed away following a prolonged illness, at a private hospital in Hyderabad on Tuesday (July 14, 2026). He is survived by two sons and a daughter. మాజీ మంత్రి ముద్రగడ పద్మనాభం గారి మరణవార్త విచారం కలిగించింది. పద్మనాభం గారి కుటుంబ సభ్యులకు నా ప్రగాఢ సానుభూతి తెలియజేస్తున్నాను. ఆయన ఆత్మకు శాంతి చేకూరాలని భగవంతుణ్ని ప్రార్థిస్తున్నాను. pic.twitter.com/6J2QKiPhMA— N Chandrababu Naidu (@ncbn) July 14, 2026He led Andhra Pradesh’s longest social movement, seeking Backward Class status for Kapus. He entered politics on the death of his father, two-time MLA Veera Raghava Rao, and won Prathipadu for the TDP in 1983, 1985 and 1989. He was a Minister in N.T. Rama Rao’s Cabinet, later moved to the BJP and the Congress, and was Kakinada MP in 1999.His movement’s most explosive day came on January 31, 2016, when Kapu Garjana protesters set fire to the Ratnachal Express near Tuni. He quit the agitation in 2020. In March 2024 he joined the YSRCP and vowed to add ‘Reddy’ to his name if K. Pawan Kalyan won Pithapuram. Mr. Pawan Kalyan won, and he changed his name on June 20, 2024. Published - July 15, 2026 11:50 am IST