Occasional friends

The government was almost on the verge of a collapse last week over the PFRDA Bill when it suddenly faced the joint demand of various parties for a division or voting in the Lok Sabha. The government managers quickly walked across to the Opposition bench and secured the crucial support of the BJP, which is bitterly critical of the government over charges of corruption. After the voting was over, Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj received a paper slip from one of the top ministers of the UPA. It had just two words written hurriedly: “Thank you.”