CHENNAI: With sharp repartees, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Thursday turned tables on a Congress legislator who tried to criticise the Governor’s address and the bus fare hike. Her counter offensive led to peals of laughter in the House, cutting across party lines.Speaking on the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address, N R Rengarajan (Pattukottai) said his party was disappointed as they had expected much in the address.Intervening, Jayalalithaa said even the State government too was disappointed. “We too had a lot of expectations from the Congress-led Central government. After repeated representation, what remains is only disappointment,” she quipped.Rengarajan conceded that it might not have been possible to completely avoid an increase in bus fare, but he suggested that the State government could have gone in for a ‘short jump’, rather than a ‘long jump’.To this, Jayalalithaa said: “As the Union government is often resorting to short jumps by hiking the price of diesel, we were forced to opt for a long jump.”Rengarajan then appealed that the memorials of former chief ministers Kamaraj and Bakthavatsalam should be refurbished on the lines of the Anna memorial. PWD Minister KV Ramalingam said the work would be taken up soon.Appealing to the CM to intervene in the Koodankulam issue, he said the agitation is being instigated by self-serving elements. “If the Koodankulam plant is commissioned, it would help bridge the electricity shortage in TN,” he said.
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