The presentation of the railway budget by Minister Lalu Prasad began on a stormy note with BJP members from Karnataka demanding apology from him for his “dirty people” remark but the maverick politician disarmed the agitated MPs by stating that he had “high respect” for Kannadigas.

“My love for Karnataka is such that I even made one leader from your state the prime minister of this country”, Lalu said without taking the name of H D Deve Gowda.

Naming Deccan Herald’s report which had carried his “dirty people” remark [apparently made against the people of the State], the minister said he has already clarified the issue. He said it was not true he said these words.

“How can you expect such words from a person like me ? It is not true. I have high regard for the people of Karnataka. If I had no love for Karnataka, I would not have made a leader from your state the prime minister. It is a different matter that he did not stay with you as partner”, the minister said, indirectly referring to Gowda parting ways with BJP.

Soon after Speaker Somnath Chatterjee asked the minister to present his budget, the State BJP members led by Ananth Kumar started raising slogans, demanding his apology for his remark.

It was one railway budget which most states opposed in the House, barring Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The UPA’s friendly Left MPs spared no effort to attack the minister for ignoring West Bengal. Shouting against the minister, the Left parties staged an angry walk out.

But there was a divide within the Left. The MPs from Kerala, happy that the state was promised a coach factory, did not join the walkout despite coaxing by their West Bengal friends.

NDA miffed

The budget angered the NDA to no end. The MPs from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh raised slogans against the minister for ignoring their states but it was not heard in the melee.

BJP MP from Karnataka Prahlad Joshi and others shouted “Lalu down, down” while staging the walk out.
Their Congress counterparts such as R L Jalappa too were unhappy but could not protest much. Congress MPs from several states got up from their seats to protest but they were pacified by Parliamentary Affairs Minister P R Dasmunsi.