Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday announced the setting up of a high-level committee to review the constitutional and legal provisions relating to the relationship between the Union government and the states, The Hindu reported.

This came amid strained ties between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government in Tamil Nadu and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government at the Centre on several issues such as the delimitation of Lok Sabha seats, the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test and the National Education Policy.

“To protect the rightful entitlements of the states and to enhance the relationship between the Union and state governments, a high-level committee has been formed,” The Indian Express quoted Stalin as saying in the Assembly.

The mandate of the committee, headed by former Supreme Court judge Kurian Joseph, would include the review of Constitutional provisions, laws and policies on Centre-state relations and recommending ways to restore subjects moved from the State List of the Constitution to the Concurrent List, the chief minister said.

The DMK chief added that the committee would also propose measures for states to overcome administrative challenges and suggest reforms to ensure their maximum autonomy without compromising the unity and integrity of the nation.

Other members of the committee are K Ashok Vardhan Shetty, a retired Indian Administrative Service officer and the former Indian Maritime University vice-chancellor, and M Naganathan, the former vice-chairperson of the state planning commission.

The Constitution protects rights in a country where people speak different languages, belong to ethnic groups and follow diverse cultures, Stalin told the Assembly.

“Despite the multitude of differences, we all live in harmony,” The Hindu quoted the chief minister as saying. “By taking this into account, our Constitution makers headed by Dr BR Ambedkar shaped our nation’s political and administrative framework, not as a unitary state, but as a union of states, following the principles of federalism.”

However, the rights of the states were being “steadily eroded”, Stalin claimed. “State governments are being forced to fight for even the basic rights from the Union government.”

Every state should be given autonomy for the nation to progress, he said.

He added: “The present Union government is taking steps to shift some of the important subjects in the State List such as the Health, Law and Finance to the Concurrent List.”

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NEET, NEP and delimitation

Speaking on NEET, Stalin said that the Union government imposed the test in “the name of promoting uniform education”, overriding the “educational policies of the Tamil Nadu government that were designed to ensure opportunities for students from marginalised and economically weaker sections”.

NEET is a qualifying test for undergraduate courses in medical and dental colleges across India. It is conducted by the National Testing Agency.

In September 2021, the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a bill seeking to exempt students in the state from NEET. The bill proposed that admission of students to medical courses be carried out based on Class 12 examination results.

The state has been opposing the examination on the grounds that the entrance test, based on a Central Board of Secondary Education syllabus, harms the prospects of state board students who follow a different curriculum.

The governor declined to give his assent to the bill after which the Assembly adopted the bill again in February 2022. The bill was then sent to President Droupadi Murmu as education is a subject on the Concurrent List.

Stalin had told the Assembly on April 4 that Murmu had withheld assent to the bill.

“This NEET benefits only a select few students and promotes coaching centres,” The Hindu quoted Stalin as saying on Tuesday. “This has disadvantaged students from rural and poor backgrounds. It has shattered the dreams of several aspirants.”

The chief minister also claimed that the Union government was attempting to impose the three-language policy under the 2020 National Education Policy, which indirectly forces Hindi upon Tamil Nadu students, The Hindu reported.

“Since the ‘Dravida model’ government that prioritises students’ welfare rejected this policy, the Centre has withheld around Rs 2,500 crore funds under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, thereby betraying the interests of our students,” he said. “It is now imperative that Education be moved back to the State List, to protect the uniqueness of each state’s language, culture and identity.”

The Samagra Shiksha scheme, implemented in 2018, is an initiative through which the Union government provides support for elementary and secondary school education.

Earlier this month, the Union education ministry told Parliament that Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal received no funds from the Centre under the Samagra Shiksha scheme for 2024-’25.

The halt in funding to the three states comes against the backdrop of them refusing to comply with the PM Schools for Rising India scheme.

The centrally-sponsored scheme aims to upgrade the infrastructure of schools managed by central, state or regional bodies. However, to avail the scheme’s benefits, state governments must first sign a memorandum of understanding with the Centre to implement the 2020 National Education Policy.

The latest National Education Policy proposes major changes to the curricular structure for school education, claims to promote flexibility in choosing academic streams and emphasises on using the mother tongue as a key medium of instruction in primary school, among other measures.

The policy has been criticised by sections of the academic community, for encouraging the privatisation of public institutions. It was also criticised for creating numerous “exit” options for students, which opponents said would encourage dropouts.

Tamil Nadu has repeatedly opposed the three-language formula in the National Education Policy. The state government said it will not change its decades-old two-language policy of teaching students Tamil and English.

The three-language formula refers to teaching students English, Hindi and the native language of a state. It was introduced in the first National Education Policy in 1968 and was retained in the new policy introduced in 2020.

On Tuesday, Stalin also claimed that Tamil Nadu was “being penalised” in the name of delimitation despite taking consistent efforts in controlling population growth through awareness campaigns.

“The upcoming delimitation of parliamentary constituencies in 2026 could drastically reduce Tamil Nadu’s representation,” he said.

Delimitation is the process of fixing the boundaries of electoral constituencies. Article 82 of the Constitution states that after every census is completed, the allocation of Lok Sabha seats to each state must be adjusted based on changes in their population.

The composition of the current Lok Sabha is based on the 1971 census. According to the 84th Amendment Act of 2001, the constituency boundaries were frozen until the first census after 2026, which would be due in 2031.

However, southern states have expressed concern that population-based delimitation could give an undue advantage to northern and central states in the Lok Sabha.

“Whenever the Union government acts against federal principles, Tamil Nadu has raised its voice in resistance,” The Hindu quoted the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief said. “We have always brought these issues before the people and the legislature, and we have never hesitated to pass laws for the welfare of our people.”