Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar must have heaved a sigh of relief as the extended budget session of the state Legislature went off smoothly.
Before the begining of the sessions,rumours were doing circles that the government would fall midway owing to the dissidence in the ruling party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
As the session began on July 19, the corridors of Vidhan Soudha were abuzz with the speculations that the dissident MLAs identified with Municipal administration Minister Balachandra Jarakiholi and Karunakar Reddy would topple the government by defeating the Finance Bill in the Assembly.
The war of words that ensued among BJP MLAs prior at the start of the session and the massive cross-voting by ruling BJP MLAs in the Presidential elections held on July 19 had given credence to these rumours.
As many as 13 BJP MLAs voted for the UPA candidate Pranab Mukherjee.
It is said that this act embarrassed the party bosses in Delhi.
However, the timely intervention of party high command and Shettar’s promise of reshuffling of portfolios immediately after the session defused the dissidence.
As a result, the Finance Bill was passed in the attendance of a majority of party MLAs.This apart, the session also witnessed a rare bonhomie between the treasury and opposition benches. There were least number of boycotts, verbal fights, dharnas during the session.
For a change, there were extensive debates and discussions on various bills that were passed during the session.
The highlight of the session was undoubtedly the exhibition of former CM BS Yeddyurappa’s control over the government and the Chief Minister as well.
The prevailing drought situation in the state also came in handy for him in this regard.
All his demands like waiving of farm loans, timely release of funds for social security schemes and his favourite Suvarna Bhoomi scheme were met by Shettar.
By doing so, not only did Yeddyurappa prove his clout in the government but preempted opposition parties who had planned to corner the government by putting forth these demands.
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