Call it a quirk of fate. When B.S. Yeddyurappa took oath as the Chief Minister of Karnataka's first BJP government on May 30, 2008, he did so in the name of the farmer. He knew he owed his present position to him. The first decision of his Cabinet was also seen as pro-farmer: the government announced that it would not charge them for the electricity sold to power irrigation pumpsets. However, a few days later, when his police opened fire to control a mob of violent protestors, the first victim, Siddalingappa Choori (35), was a farmer. Several others were wounded. A bus goes up in flamesThe incident occurred at Haveri, 350 km away from Bangalore, on June 10, 2008. The trigger? A protest by farmers, who were demanding supply of fertilisers, diammonium phosphate (DAP), in particular. The farmers were agitated as the region had been receiving copious rainfall since June 3, but they were unable to start sowing for want of DAP. Though the fertiliser shortage was felt across Karnataka, the nondescript Haveri turned out to be the epicentre of violence. That is because the southwest monsoon arrived here first and if DAP was not applied and seeds not sown immediately, farmers could forget about raising kharif crops. "Our soil is used to chemical fertilisers, and unless they are used now, I can't get a crop,' rues Yellappa Malagi (65), who owns 50 acres on which he had planned to sow cash crops like cotton and soyabean. A farmer is marked on receiving his quota of fertiliserNot a single shop