With or without him, the treasury benches legislators just can't get over former CM Capt Amarinder Singh. Due to his expulsion from the state assembly, he was not in the House, yet today's session was heavily loaded with the anti-Amarinder sentiment.

Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal, for whom it's the maiden session in the treasury bench, sat composed when the ruling party legislators trained guns at Amarinder, hitting him below the belt.

Raking up the issue of Amarinder's Pak friend, Akali MLA Virsa Singh Valtoha called the former CM a "fraud" and a "characterless" leader. Interestingly, all this and much more verbal assault against Amarinder was to empty Opposition benches during the reply on Governor's address after Congress MLAs staged a walkout.

In an attempt to bring out the contrast, MLA Amarjit Shahi spoke about Amarinder's fondness for hard drinks and Sukhbir's decision to get himself baptised before his coronation as the Deputy CM.

But the striking part in today's session was the "weak" posturing of the Opposition Congress MLAs in front of a united and aggressive team of ruling legislators, who blunted everything that came their way.

Missing in action were leader of Opposition Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and several other senior Congress leaders, who are in New Delhi. The reigns of the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) were with senior Congress leader Avtar Singh Brar.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal congratulated Brar for his discharge of duty in the absence of Bhattal. The CM even wished him the post of the leader of Opposition.

... contd.