C.B. Gupta was still jostling for power. The governor, Gopala Reddi still allowed Gupta to induct more members when he should’ve called for his resignation. It seemed like all the powers that be gave full latitudes to Gupta to sustain power when he had none. As reports from contemporary media note, this wasn’t an entirely surprising situation; Gupta had ruled the state for all these years like a “virtual czar” and had greased sufficient palms and widely distributed patronage to ensure this hold on power. But by December, with his caucus losing members more steadily than ever, it looked like Gupta’s days were numbered.