Hyderabad, Feb 16: Congress high command appears to be still keen on a rapport with the YSR Congress chief and rebel MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy.

Congress top leadership has been trying for that rapport ever since Jagan’s party stunned it and the main opposition TDP in the by-elections. Earlier when the Congress high command sent the MIM chief and MP Asaduddin Owaisi to the Chanchalguda jail with a request to extend cooperation for the election of Pranab Mukherjee as the President, Jagan had obliged. It was at that time the ruling party’s leadership also sent word that the high command was looking at greater cooperation from him. Jagan has been pondering over the issue. He has already made it clear even openly that his party was committed to secularism and hence would support only the Congress-led UPA and not the BJP-led NDA.

It is learnt that the Congress president Sonia Gandhi has been telling her close associates to convey to Jagan that it was her desire that he merged his party in the greater interest of both the parties like Chiranjeevi did. But Jagan was adamant and reportedly replied emissaries of Sonia Gandhi that he would retain both his personal as well as his party’s identity, though he might support the UPA government.

It is learnt that the UPA chairperson has entrusted the job of convincing Jagan to the external affairs minister Salman Khurshid. consequently Khurshid sent the message through Congress MP KVP Ramachandra Rao. KVP asked Anakapalli MP Sabbam Hari to convey this message to Jagan. Hari and Jagan’s close relative YV Subba Reddy recently met Jagan in the Chanchalguda jail and put the message across. But Jagan told them that it would be better to be a separate entity and support the Congress for the greater welfare and development of the state.

Even after that failed mission, Congress has been watching the progress of Jagan’s party, which has been attracting even MLAs of other parties which indicates a general ground swell of public support to him.

Now as Rahul Gandhi has taken over the vice president of the AICC and started sharing the burden of his mother, it is learnt that he would take over from her the responsibility of dealing with Jagan. Salman Khurshid is said to be still the emissary of the Congress leadership to deal with Jagan. As Jagan had spurned the suggestion of merger, Congress high command is said to be working out other proposals to tame him. However Jagan’s family is keen on not yielding to any proposal until he is brought out at least on a bail. They are hoping that it would happen soon. Once Jagan comes out, he would deal with the Congress emissaries himself, say party sources.