Union of states & a subtle reminder

Since the DMK came to power in Tamil Nadu, a rather esoteric debate has emerged in the state. A strong commitment to federalism has always been one of the features of the Dravidian movement. Having assumed power after a decade, the DMK started using the Tamil phrase for “Union government” rather than the one for “Central government”. The change did not go unnoticed, but the DMK has maintained that the phrase is used in the Constitution, the first article of which terms India a union of states. While the phrase has now gained some currency, its usage has raised the hackles of the BJP that leads the Union government at Delhi. The DMK has brushed off criticism of its decision on entirely logical and perfectly accurate grounds—the phrase comes from the Constitution, even court documents use the phrase Union government rather than Central government, and the party has every intention of maintaining good ties with New Delhi. However, the BJP’s somewhat overheated response, accusing the DMK of nursing secessionist sentiments, illustrates that the Dravidian major has made its point.

While India has been described as quasi-federal, power has become more and more concentrated in the Union government at the cost of the states. Since coming to power, the DMK had flagged the Union government’s reliance on cesses as a means by which it has avoided sharing tax revenue with states, to the detriment of state finances. The phrase “Central government” no doubt justifies this centralisation of power and money. In that context, the phrase “Union government” is a subtle reminder that India is made up of its states, a reminder that aims to undermine New Delhi’s—and perhaps even the BJP’s— view of a homogenous India that can be governed with a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. This is not a secessionist view. India is a nation of many languages, religions and cultures bound together by common identity forged through an acknowledgment of differences rather than an impossible insistence on sameness.