Leader of the Opposition R. Ashok wrote to Speaker U.T. Khader on Monday, requesting him to extend the ongoing Assembly session in Belagavi by a week, citing the need for an in-depth discussion on several issues, including the problems related to development of North Karnataka and the alleged failure of law and order.The session in Belagavi, which began on December 8, is scheduled to run until December 19. However, it was cut short by two days due to the death of two sitting members, and although half of the session’s duration is completed, several pressing issues remain to be discussed.“The Chief Minister and Ministers still need to respond to several serious issues raised by legislators regarding problems in North Karnataka. In addition, legislators require sufficient time to discuss various issues, including the collapsed law and order situation in the State and the poor performance in utilisation of grants in various government departments,” Mr. Ashok said in the letter.“The government has shown negligence in the matter of ration cards. More than 3.22 lakh applications submitted for ration cards across Karnataka remain pending. Among them, a large number of applications are from several districts in North Karnataka and Bengaluru. Such serious issues need to be discussed and solutions should be found. Hence the Assembly session should be extended by one week,” he said.Published - December 15, 2025 06:55 pm IST