Noted film actor Jayasudha, who joined the Congress on Wednesday, said she would not indulge in personal criticism of actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi, but would fight him on issues. "We need not indulge in mudslinging," she said. "I don’t like it. I will prefer to speak about issues and serve people. People are more important than Chiranjeevi."

Apart from Jayasudha, Mr Ramamuni Reddy, a close friend of the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, and actor Vijaychander, grandson of Tangaturi Prakasam Pantulu, joined the Congress. The Chief Minister, the APCC president, Mr D. Srinivas, and the AP Mahila Congress Chief, Ms Ganga Bhavani, were present at Gandhi Bhavan when the trio formally joined the party.

Dr Rajasekhar Reddy welcomed them and hoped they would prove to be assets for the party. Jayasudha, who was in the Telugu Desam for some time, said she was impressed by the developmental and welfare schemes launched by the Chief Minister. "I joined the Congress after thinking about it for a long time," she said. "The Congress would provide me a platform to serve people."

Jayasudha has done 200 films including a dozen with N.T. Rama Rao and two films with Chiranjeevi. However, she refused to speculate on the future prospects of Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam. "People are the ultimate judges," she said. "Being an actor alone would not help. You should serve people and earn their goodwill." When asked if she expected Chiranjeevi to have an impact as NTR did, she said: "That is the big question in everyone’s minds." Meanwhile, Mr Ramamuni Reddy said he quit the TD since the president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, deviated from the party ideology.