Former Supreme Court judge Justice Kurian Joseph will head the high-level committee constituted by Tamil Nadu government to study State autonomy.
This was announced by Chief Minister MK Stalin on X.
"In a defining moment that echoes the uncompromising legacy of the Dravidian movement, I announced in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, the formation of a High-Level Committee on State autonomy, comprising Hon’ble Justice Kurian Joseph, former Supreme Court Judge; Thiru. M Ashok Vardhan Shetty, distinguished retired IAS officer; and Professor M Naganathan, former Vice Chairman of the State Planning Commission," the post by Stalin said.
The committee will revisit and reassert the principles of State autonomy in today's context, he further stated.
"As we complete fifty years of the historic State Autonomy Resolution moved in this very Assembly by Thalaivar Kalaignar, the formation of this committee seeks to revisit and reassert the principles of State autonomy in today’s context. A strong Union is not built by weakening States. It is built by empowering them. And once again, Tamil Nadu rises to lead this call," the post said.
The committee has been constituted in the wake of the tussle between Tamil Nadu and the Central government over various issues including Governor's alleged interference in State government's functioning, alleged refusal by the Central government to release funds due to TN and the recent raids by Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) premises.
The Supreme Court had recently pulled up TN Governor RN Ravi for keeping ten bills passed by the TN legislature pending with him for unduly long periods in violation of the principles laid down by the Court in the Punjab Governor's case in November 2023.
He seemed to have been weighed by extraneous considerations in doing so, the Court had opined in its judgment.
Stalin in his post said that the encroachment of Union government into the State domain has disrupted the Constitutional balance.
"Babasaheb Dr. B.R. Ambedkar unequivocally stated that 'both the Union and the States are created by the Constitution... the one is not subordinate to the other in its own field.' Yet, the steady encroachment of the Union into the rightful domains of the States has disrupted the delicate constitutional balance," CM Stalin said in his post on X.