‘Cooperative federalism must be strengthened for benefit Indian nation’

Warangal: Stating that cooperative federalism is in peril now in India, former bureaucrat SN Sahu has said that ‘the time has come to fulfill that vision of Nehru to strengthen cooperative federalism’. Sahu, served as Officer on Special Duty and Press Secretary to President of India besides several other key positions in the union government. […]

Warangal: Stating that cooperative federalism is in peril now in India, former bureaucrat SN Sahu has said that ‘the time has come to fulfill that vision of Nehru to strengthen cooperative federalism’. Sahu, served as Officer on Special Duty and Press Secretary to President of India besides several other key positions in the union government.

Delivering the 10th endowment lecture in memory of Prof Jayashankar on “Indian Constitution and Federal Vision” Dynamics of Centre –State Relations in India Today” at the Kakatiya University (KU) campus here on Saturday, SN Sahu said, “Unfortunately dissent now has been criminalised and people’s houses are being bulldozed for their criticisms of the Government. Such measures against the civil liberties of people will spell danger against federal vision and structure. We need to invoke Ambedkar’s slogan “Educate, Agitate and Organise” in our continuing struggle to defend the federal vision and in doing so we will defend the Idea of India,”

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“It is rather a pity that the union Government talking so much about cooperative federalism is acting contrary to its letter and spirit. The way several oppositions ruled States of our country have helplessly seen their governments dislodged and in their places BJP Governments installed, gives the impression that the top leadership of that party wants only one-party rule across the country. The leadership appears to create a perception that there should be one nation and one party,” he observed.

“The manner in which the Enforcement Directorate is used against opposition party leaders ruling some States of our country and the way in which they are arrested and put behind bars sends a chilling message that any opposition to the ruling regime at the centre would not be accepted,” Sahu said.

Referring to the GST council, he also said that the way GSTs are levied, and States do not get their share in time has left the States at the mercy of the Centre for funds which they were earlier getting from the taxes they levied and collected. “Even the greater weightage enjoyed by the Centre vis-a-vis States in the GST Council has raised questions about fair play in taking decisions on GST issues,” he opined.

Stating that federal framework vividly portraying the diversities of our society is now confronting the challenges from those who impose uniformity by proclaiming that India has to be defined by one religion and one language, Sahu said.

“Such an assertion rooted in one religion and language is a negation of the Constitution and constitutional vision of India which celebrates multiplicity of faiths and languages and upholds secularism, declared by the Supreme Court as the basic structure of the Constitution in the Bommai judgment of 1994. That was why Dr B R Ambedkar in his book Pakistan and Partition of India cautioned that “If Hindu Raj does become a fact, it will, no doubt, be the greatest calamity for this country…. Hindu Raj must be prevented at any cost. Even Sardar Patel who integrated princely States had said that the idea of Hindu Rashtra is a mad idea,” he said.

KU Vice-Chancellor Prof Thatikonda Ramesh has presided over the programme, said that they would establish a gold medal in the name of Prof Jayashankar, and also install the statue of Jayashankar at the Humanities Building besides naming the building after him. Dr K Jayashankar Memorial Trust president and former VC Prof N Linga Murthy, Trust Secretary and MLC Dr Banda Prakash, KU Registrar Prof B Venkatram Reddy and others have paid tributes to Prof Jayashankar at the programme.