No sugar, only cane for Siddaramaiah this session

Belagavi: It will be all thunder and lightning at the monsoon session of the state legislature set to begin in Belagavi on Monday with the opposition sharpening their knives to make an all-out attack on the Siddaramaiah government. Topping the BJP-JD(S) agenda is the spate of farmer suicides from Mandya to Kalaburagi over pending sugarcane price dues which has raised serious doubts about the government’s agricultural policies.

Giving an indication of the shape of things to come, BJP senior leaders B.S. Yeddyurappa and Jagadish Shettar courted arrest on Sunday as they tried to stage a march defying prohibitory orders. With BJP and JD(S) leaders cosying up to each other in recent weeks, the Congress where factionalism is rife, will have to close ranks to counter the coordinated attack by the opposition.

The sittings of the Assembly and Council will be held from June 29 to July 10 in Belagavi and from July 13 to 24 in Bengaluru. The session is being held primarily to pass the appropriation bill as the Siddaramaiah government had sought a vote on account for four months till July 31.

Meanwhile major farmer organizations have joined hands and decided to lay siege to Suvarna Vidhana Soudha, venue of the Belagavi session, on Monday.