Minister apologises for unpatriotic term

BANGALORE: The Legislative Assembly on Tuesday witnessed emotional exchanges and high drama after urban development minister D K Shivakumar accused BJP members of being unpatriotic. The enraged BJP members staged a dharna in the well of the House, demanding an apology from the minister, even as Shivakumar stuck to his stand and refused to withdraw his words.Law and parliamentary affairs minister D B Chandre Gowda tried to manage the situation by stating: "The government expresses regret that the opposition is hurt," but since Shivakumar remained recalcitrant, the BJP members declined to return to their seats. The ruckus happened after Araga Jnanendra (BJP) raised the issue of Narayan of Moovalli village in his constituency, who has returned home after being a prisoner in Pakistan for 21 years. "Your government was magnanimous enough to give a bouquet and express sympathy for a little child from Pakistan. Please extend this to Narayan," he said. Shivakumar, however, interrupted him as soon as he mentioned Pakistan. "You are accusing us of supporting Pakistan? We are not unpatriotic, you are," he said in a raised voice. Opposition leader Jagadish Shettar and MLAs Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri and S Suresh Kumar stated: "You cannot accuse us of being unpatriotic. This is an insult to our constituents." Even as deputy speaker Manohar H Tahsildar tried in vain to control the situation. Jnanendra and Kumar demanded that the records be read out to show that the BJP was not accusing the government of conniving with Pakistan. "I do not know under what daze the minister was in. I was only appreciating the government's magnanimity," Jnanendra maintained. S S Patil (AIPJD) felt that Shivakumar's remark was uncalled for, even as the other AIPJD members remained silent. P G R Sindhia (JDU) suggested that the remarks be expunged. The BJP members went to the well and staged a dharna declaring that unless Shivakumar withdrew his remarks, they would not return to their seats and the row continued till Tahsildar adjourned the House for lunch. The argument carried after lunch as well. Nearly after an hour of arguments, Chief Minister S M Krishna intervened and said: "What has happened from morning is very unfortunate. Enemies and unpatriotic are terms that are available in the dictionary. We need not give any importance to such terms." Justifying the state government's gesture in treating Pakistani child Noor Fatima, Krishna said: "It is in our culture to serve those who are suffering, irrespective of which ever country they come from. We have adopted a humanitarian approach to the whole issue." An emotional Shivakumar quickly got up and said: "If I have hurt anyone's feelings, I apologise." Following the minister's apology, BJP members withdrew their dharna.