PUNE, Nov 14: The Congress-led Democratic Front government today experienced what lies in store for it in the days to come. On the very first day of the newly-elected State Assembly, the Shiv Sena made use of all legislative means to put the Government on the mat over several developmental issues in the State!Amidst high drama, the Government was made to realise that law and order has deteriorated completely what with revolvers available easily and one actually brought in the new imposing building of the Vidhan Bhavan by Sena member Deepak Paigude representing Pune.As the Sena took the Government to task on several issues including the meagre procurement price of cotton, taxes on the notebooks, the increase in the number of infiltrators in Mumbai, Chief Minister Narayan Rane of the Congress had to finally admit that the previous Sena-BJP government functioned quite well and it was better to be in the opposition than to run the Government with its alliance partners!So when did Narayan Rane switch over to the Congress? And if he is the chief minister, who is his deputy? The answers to all these queries were provided at the marathon mock session of the State Assembly held at a holiday resort on the outskirts of the city. Former minister Babanrao Gholap acted as the deputy chief minister, but did not speak a word through the session.All the talking was done by the newly elected MLAs of the Shiv Sena who learnt a few lessons about the legislative ways and means. Datta Nalawade who acted as the chairman of the State Assembly had to frequently caution the members about the rights and privileges of the house and how its decorum should be maintained. And all of them were warned not to play to the gallery to attract the attention of the media. Paigude, who produced a pistol to prove his point that law and order had deteriorated, was reprimanded by Nalawade not to repeat the incident in future.The proceedings of the mock session began sharp at 9 am. At the outset Nalawade congratulated the Government for the construction of the new imposing building of Vidhan Bhavan. Indeed nothing was amiss at the session which began with the question hour in which the Sena sought information from the Government on the indiscriminate lathi-charge on Shiv Sainiks at the high court in Mumbai.Education Minister Sudhir Joshi said that the Government will reconsider the decision about taxes on notebooks, while Finance Minister Bal Nandgaonkar assured the opposition that the Government will not spare anyone in the Rs 600 crore scam.Chief Minister Rane, in reply to the queries put by opposition leader Diwakar Raote regarding the developmental works, said that the Government would not be able to stall any works because of public pressure. ``There are still some difficulties in finalising our policies. Every now and then I have to rush to Delhi to meet the high command. Next I have to consult Sharad Pawar before taking all the decisions. And to implement them I have to take permission from the leaders of the Nationalist Congress Party here. Actually, we have not come here to give anything to the people. We have come here for our gains,'' he concluded his remarks dripping in sarcasm.The mock session of the Assembly was held as part of the two-day workshop for the party MLAs. Union Minister for Heavy Industries Manohar Joshi and State Minister for Finance Balasaheb Vikhe-Patil also made brief speeches on the party's role in the opposition. The workshop concluded with the address of Sena supremo Bal Thackeray. However, news reporters were not allowed to listen to Thackeray's speech.
