Thursday's High Court order, permitting the completion of the new annexe of the Legislators' Home located in the Cubbon Park limits, has only fuelled the competition between the two. The new annexe with its more spacious accommodation, has been assigned to the MLAs while the MLCs have only their old premises available to them.

The recent bifurcation in the administrative functions of the Legislative Council and the Assembly, with two separate Secretariats in place of one earlier, has merely given the old feud an official status.

In an obvious bid to propitiateenvironmentalists, Legislative Council Chairman DB Kalmankar has reportedly held consultations with various bodies including the Urban Art Commission to ascertain their approval of the new construction in the old building.

The blue-print suggests modifications to the original plan of the old Legislators' Home in which 65 rooms have been provided with a verandah running alongside its quadrangular layout. The new proposal suggests that an additional room and bathroom be constructed in the open courtyard that lies within the building. This way, there is no encroachment on the green spaces in its vicinity.

The Finance Secretary is said to have more or less given his approval orally, during talks with the Council Chairman. The additional grant will therefore be released, say insiders.