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Is Tamil Nadu govt succumbing to pressure and toeing the Centre’s line?

Governor R.N. Ravi has asked for a presentation on implementation of welfare schemes

22-Stalin-new

A month ago, when Tamil Nadu Finance Minister P.T.R. Palanivel Thiagarajan skipping the GST council meeting sparked a row, PTR (as he is popularly known) hit out at his detractors saying there was lack of clarity in the agenda for the meeting. When he was criticised by the opposition for missing the meeting, he said he had taken permission from Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.

Though there were difference of opinions within his own party about the incident, PTR was praised for pointing out the flaws in the implementation of GST.

A few days after the GST meet, PTR called on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman when she was in Chennai, and tweeted saying they had a cordial meeting. Within a week after the meeting between the two, other ministers in the Tamil Nadu cabinet made a beeline for Delhi to meet their central counterparts and seek financial support, in an apparent attempt to smoothen the relationship with the Centre.

Municipal Administration Minister K.N. Nehru called on Jal Sakthi Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to seek funds for Tamil Nadu water supply and drainage (TWAD) board. He also met Union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

Tamil Nadu Food Minister Sakkarapani met Commerce and Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal and sought funds for milled custom rice subsidy, while Forest Minister K. Ramachandran called on Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav.

Industries Minister Thangam Thennarasu too met Goyal and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and Minister for Public Works E.V. Velu called on Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari.

While one could argue that these meetings may be routine as the Stalin-led government has come to power barely a few months ago, it is significant that these meetings took place after Tamil Nadu got a new governor, R.N. Ravi. There has been a visible change in the approach of DMK ministers, who were always confrontational with the Centre, ever since the appointment of Ravi.

Meanwhile, on October 16, CM Stalin met Ravi a day after the BJP state president K. Annamalai presented a memorandum to the governor, against the DMK government, accusing it of failing to maintain law and order. The BJP claimed that the CM rushed to meet the governor because of the memorandum the party submitted, but the DMK rubbished it, calling the meeting “routine.”

It appears that the DMK, which has been reiterating the importance of state autonomy and federal structure, is in a tight spot. On October 18, Tamil Nadu chief secretary V. Irai Anbu wrote to the heads of various government departments, asking them to prepare presentations for the governor, who had sought information about the welfare schemes in each departments.

The letter, which was leaked to the media, stated: “Governor of Tamil Nadu wishes to know about the functioning of certain departments in the state and ongoing welfare schemes of the state as well as Union government.”

The chief secretary’s directive to the departments to appraise the governor of their functioning is not a usual practice. The question as to why DMK chose to comply with the governor’s directions even as it infringes on the state’s rights remains unanswered.

DMK spokesperson T. K. S. Elangovan justified governor’s interference in the administration matters saying, “There is nothing wrong in the governor seeking a report.” However, the DMK or its representatives in the government did not clarify if the governor is entitled to ask officers to separately brief him.

The Congress, meanwhile, opposed the governor seeking details from each of the departments, with senior leader Peter Alphonse saying the governor should function within the powers under the Constitution. In a detailed statement, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K.S. Alagiri said only the chief minister has the power to review the government schemes.

Alagiri called the interference by Ravi an “overreach”.  “The suspicion raised by us during the appointment of new governor is strengthened. Governor is not only interfering with the state government but also acts on behalf of the BJP.  His actions create a suspicion whether the governor is helping the BJP to grow in the state. If governor interferes in state’s functioning like this, he has to face the consequences. Due to the governor’s actions, TN BJP will be the sufferer,” the Congress leader said, and requested the governor to act responsibly and respect peoples mandate.

Irai Anbu offered a clarification saying it was his routine administrative letter to the heads of departments, and dubbed the controversy surrounding it “unnecessary.” However, he failed to explain if the heads of departments apprising the governor has been a practice.

A daily situation report or DSR is being sent to the governor’s office ever since Banwarilal Purohit took charge as the governor in 2017. Unlike Purohit, highly placed sources say that Ravi has been raising questions on the report. This, and the presentation sought by the governor could turn into a huge embarrassment to the DMK government, as it is likely that Ravi may seek changes in the implementation of certain schemes and ask the government to focus more on the Centre’s schemes.

The DMK had once protested  former governor Purohit visiting districts and supervising the implementation of welfare schemes. It now seems that the party is unable to stick to its core principle of state autonomy and is giving the way for a proxy rule by the Centre.

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