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intellectuals who acted and preferred to act in terms of western idioms. Inevitably, therefore, the party seemed to operate almost solely on the thin top layer of the Indian body politic. That meant that it faced almost insuperable tasks in reaching and mobilizing the vast Indian masses to whom western ways and the English language are great unknowns. PVG Raju with his enormous influence in the region, kept the party alive for a decade in north coastal Andhra Pradesh. In the first general elections of 1951-52, of the six seats won by the Socialist Party in the Madras Assembly, five were from his area of influence. Of the 13 seats won by the PSP in the 1955 Assembly elections, 9 were from this region again.The vagaries of the national scene therefore determined PVG Raju's next step in politics. The Socialist Party or its various splinter groups would not be able to act as a viable opposition. The next best thing to do was to join the ruling party and from that position of stability contribute to the good of the nation.PVG Raju's speeches in parliament from that time are all articulate, individualistic and fearlessly spoken. Always to the point and never pandering to the galleries, there were also a couple of occasions when he challenged the Prime Minister on fact and for misleading the House. Fellow members appreciated him for his frankness and lack of guile. He was not a manipulative politician.PVG Raju joined the Congress on December 9, 1959, at a ceremonial function held at the APCC office. PVG Raju with Pandit Nehru120