Even as AICC incharge of AP affairs Ghulam Nabi Azad is in Hyderabad to take stock of the party affairs post Kadapa poll rout, several Congress MLAs, in an act of open defiance, hobnobbed with YSR Congress party chief Jaganmohan Reddy at the deeksha camp at Guntur yesterday. Putting the Congress high command in an embarrassing situation, former minister and Jagan loyalist Pilli Subhash Chandrabose said that they were not worried about disqualification or suspension for aligning with Jagan.

With nine more Congress legislators joining Jagan's deeksha on the second day, the strength of the ruling party MLAs supporting him reached 17. In addition, five MLCs and Nellore MP Mekapati Rajamohana Reddy were present. Apart from Bose, Dharmana Krishna Das, Congress legislator from Narasannapet constituency in Srikakulam and Korla Bharathi (Tekkali) attended Jagan's deeksha. Kakinada legislator Dwarampudi Chandrasekhara Reddy and Udayagiri MLA Mekapati Chandrasekhara Reddy were also present along with MLAs Baburao, Srinivasulu, Akepati Amaranath Reddy and Terlam Balaraju. Congress MLAs, Konda Surekha, Balineni Srinivasa Reddy, Pinnelli Ramakrishna Reddy, Mekathoti Sucharitha, Gadikota Srikanth Reddy and Buchepalli Sivaprasada Reddy, TDP MLA Nallapureddy Prasanna Kumar Reddy, five Congress MLCs Jupudi Prabhakara Rao, Pulla Padmavathi, Konda Murali, Meka Seshu Babu and Desai Tippa Reddy, were present at the camp.

Deepening the crisis in the ruling Congress, Congress MLA and brother of minister Dharmana Prasada Rao, Krishna Das on Monday hailed YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy as the "leader of people". Das went on to say that he has decided to walk along with Jagan and has no hesitation to quit the assembly if asked by his 'leader'.