HAPPIER TIMES: Nirmal Sai and Manogna with their parents.

Vijayawada: It was too late for Samyukta, paternal grandmother of Manogna and Nirmal Sai, the children who were stifled to death on Friday night allegedly by their father Ramdas Deendayas Prasad, to realise that a stay of one more day at her son's home could have probably saved the lives of her grandchildren.

Samyukta had left for Bellary in Karnataka, her native place, on Thursday after spending a week at her son's place. Her husband, R.D. Naidu, a traffic inspector in the Railways at Bellary, too had spent some time with his son and grandchildren and left for Bellary earlier than his wife.

Frequent callers

The grandparents had to come here rushing on hearing the news, only to see that their loved ones with whom they had spent a memorable time were killed in a ghastly manner.

The couple used to frequently call Nirmal Sai and Manogna and would feel contented every time they spoke to their grandchildren.

The shell-shocked couple on Tuesday could hardly digest the fact that there would not be recitation of rhymes at their house anymore.

"We used to be happy whenever we spoke to our grandchildren. We didn't expect such a tragic end to a happy family," Mr. Naidu said.

Same was the condition of Narmada's mother Kanaka Durga, who lives in Gangavathi village in Karnataka. The last conversation she had with her grandchildren was on Thursday.

Relatives of Prasad and Narmada refused to believe that there could be any disharmony or a serious problem in the family, which could have driven Prasad, the accused in the killing, to committing the crime. Insisting that it was a happy family, the relatives felt that the couple had no issues to quarrel over. The couple had even attended a marriage function in Hyderabad and reached here on February 26.

"They also celebrated the birthday of Manogna in an impressive way. I still remember her sweet talk when we telephoned her to convey our greetings on her birthday in February," said P. Sambasiva Rao, uncle of Narmada.

Even though Kanaka Durga did not give a clean chit to her son-in-law, she said: "He (Prasad) used to take care of my daughter very well. In fact, I called her on Thursday and her tone and tenor did not indicate any tension in the family," Kanaka Durga said.

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