A day after Gudivada MLA Kodali Nani switched loyalty to the YSR Congress, the TDP was administered another shock on Tuesday when its Polit Bureau member, U. Kalpana, made her intentions clear of joining that party.
Like Mr. Nani, she had been maintaining a distance from the TDP for some time now and did not attend the two-day extended executive meeting that ended here on Tuesday. She was accommodated in the Polit Bureau in place of former Assembly Speaker K. Pratibha Bharathi, though she lost twice in the 2004 and 2009 elections from Pamarru constituency in Krishna district.
Hailing from the Mala community, which is strongly supporting the YSR Congress, she met YSRC Nellore MP, Mekapati Rajamohan Reddy, reportedly to convey her decision.