Amid the ongoing political drama in the Maharashtra legislative assembly, crucial budgetary demands were cleared without any discussion for the second consecutive day on Tuesday. Even as the ruling and Opposition benches continued a political slugfest, the government pushed through the budget demands raised for the crucial farm and allied sectors for 2016-17. The government had earlier presented a budget focussed on the crisis-laden agrarian sector, announcing allocations of over Rs 26,000 crore. This got approved without any discussion on Tuesday. [related-post] Demands raised for three other important departments - the Revenue and Forest department, the Cooperation, Marketing, and Textiles Department, and the Women and Child Development department were similarly passed without any discussion. The political crossfire also washed out a discussion on a calling attention raised by the Opposition on the severe water crisis in the drought-hit Latur region in Marathwada. On Monday, the verbal slugfest between the two sides, had disrupted the government's reply on the budget discussion. The government even secured an approval to the Vote-On-Account for the first few months of 2016-17, and demands raised by four departments including School Education, Higher Education, Medical Education, and Tribal departments without any discussion. Maharashtra's Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse admitted that it was unfortunate that the budget demands and official business were being transacted without any discussion, and blamed the Opposition for "not participating in the discussion despite repeated pleas." The Opposition benches countered this by accusing the government of being 'insensitive'. Former Assembly Speaker Dilip Walse-Patil even urged the Speaker not to push through official business in this manner. "You are the custodian of the legislative house. We expect you to be more sensitive towards the Opposition's cause," Walse-Patil told Speaker Haribhau Bagade. But Bagade's defence was that the Opposition was not playing it's part well. "I've held discussion with the group leaders for smooth functioning. But the Opposition members appear bent on disrupting proceedings," he said in the House. Khadse later said,"As part of the government, I want to say that the official work will continue to happen. We would like the Opposition to participate."
