Articles
Confrontation Between Some Chief Ministers And Union Government
Dt: 24/11/22
Confrontation Between Some Chief Ministers
And Union Government
Dr T H Chowdary*
The militant confrontation of the Chief Minister of Telangana and his minister - son cum working President of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) makes me recall the dialogue between Kulapati K M Munshi one of the Chief Architects of the Constitution of India and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Munsh iji like Sardar Patel was opposed to linguism and linguistic provinces as these would lead to fissiparous and disruptionist tendencies to the detriment of the integrity of the Indian state.
2. On May 29, 1961 Munshiji wrote to Jawaharlal Nehru a long letter detailing the evil consequences of linguism and linguistic states. The letter was followed by a fairly long discussion between Munshiji and Jawaharlal Nehru in New Delhi on July 2, 1961. Munshi ji suggested several steps which should be vigorously taken to counter the disruptionist developments that linquism and linguistic states would lead to “confrontation between the Chief Ministers and the Union government”.
3. Munshiji warned that, “ a time might come when the CMs would not tolerate a strong Union government” and that is what we see today. He further observed “ as one who has seen the development of linguism from the beginning I cannot help noting that the Union in some respect is developing into a confederacy, CMs assuming the role of warring barons of mediaeval England. Already State ministers talk about, “our Rivers, our boundaries, our food crops” ( our model of welfare and development).
“ things being as they are, it would require a strong Prime Minister to be able to assert himself or the head of the State to uphold the constitutional powers of Parliament by his firm handling of the difficult situation. ( in Pilgrimage To Freedom by K M Munshi ; pages 211-41 and pages 212-224, The Constitution Of India , Role of Dr K M Munshi by Sheshrao Chawan, a Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s publication).
4. The CMs of Telangana state , Tamilnadu, West Bengal and Kerala are in a confrontationist mood with the Union government, especially the Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi . The most militant of these are CM K.Chandrasekhara Rao and his minister -son K.T. Rama Rao of Telangana. The KCR family and his party ,the TRS (now BRS) are supported by AIMIM of Asaduddin Owaisi who has publicly and loudly stated that he wants a very weak and loose coalition of regional parties to rule India from the Center.
5. The confrontationist Chief Ministers are leaders of regional parties. They accuse Sri Modi, the Prime Minister and the BJP as under-mining “federalism”, a word not found in any of the 395 Articles of the Constitution. India’s Constitution provides for a strong Union (Central) Government, which can, according to many Articles, over-ride State governments and even legislate for them. The regional leaders are mostly dynasts and are like the Subedars of post- Aurangzeb Moguls in Delhi. India needs a strong Union government to preserve the integrity of the State and Nation. ( 1,352 words)
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