Daily Archives: June 9, 2021

After several years of jerks and starts, the 1787 convention came to order and 55 delegates worked through the steamy Philadelphia summer to negotiate solutions for the weaknesses of the Confederation.

Horse-and-buggy government: The creation of federalism by granting specific powers to the federal government and reserving all other powers to the states worked quite well for the first decades when horse-and-buggy was the means of transportation and most business was local.

As time passed, the Supreme Court was asked to take a second look at the traditional interpretations of the commerce clause, the general welfare clause, equal protection clause, among others. So the definition of federalism has been expanded to deal with new unforeseen problems arising out of nationalization of the country.

America is nationalized: However, the American economy, society and culture have become so national that the fragmentation of a 1787 federal system no longer serves the people adequately. The structure of the government ought to facilitate, rather than delay or obstruct the prosperity and happiness of the people.

At the present time, groups have come into existence with the goal of changing the Constitution. A number of states have signed on to the proposal to have two-thirds of the state legislatures call a constitutional convention. Other folks want to junk the Electoral College for direct election of the president.

Convention suggestions: Then there are others that want to reverse the Supreme Court decision declaring corporations people for purposes of contributing to campaigns. Another group wants a convention limited to adding an amendment requiring a balanced budget at the federal level.

Support and opposition to all of these convention proposals has been bipartisan, with the John Birch Society and the Eagle Forum against and the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council in favor. States have been so divided on the proposals that they have been withdrawing their consent as fast as new supporters have appeared.

Most of the dialogue about forcing a call of various conventions is not relevant to the greater question of redesigning the national government to manifest the national complexion of our economy and society. National issues have become more important than state issues.

Federalism failed: The failure of federalism is well documented by our recent experience with the muddled management of COVID-19 at all levels of government. President Donald Trump put federalism to the test when he delegated the COVID-19 pandemic to the states.

States became enemies as they tried to outbid each other for medical supplies needed to fight COVID-19. Then the federal government got into the act and was competing with the states.

Responses to the pandemic varied radically from one state to the next. Some states closed their doors to out-of-staters. Masking rules were inconsistent, with governors fighting local governments.

Good road show: It would have made a great road show but the cast was too big.

It would be funny except some experts estimate that federalism and its implementers caused 300,000 of the COVID deaths.

A federal system spawns a lot of piecemeal policy. Because federalism requires the mobilization of a high level public support, processes are slow and cumbersome.

But just as in the days of the Articles of Confederation we are now faced with problems that are not being solved in a federal system.

It will take a national government to develop universal health care, to cope with earth warming, to respond effectively to natural disaster, to finance the infrastructure, to secure equal rights for all, and to cope with unforeseen crises.

All of these will require a greater sense of community.

Lloyd Omdahl is a former North Dakota lieutenant governor and professor at UND.

Read the rest here:

Lloyd Omdahl: The United States has outgrown federalism - Grand Forks Herald

The system of polity introduced by the framers of our constitution is unique in its disposition and functioning. The Indian constitution, the longest written constitution, tried to assemble the best features of different constitutional systems and also attempted to weed out possible vices inherent in any particular system and ended up adhering to the middle path. The drafting committee described the constitution as federal in structure, though the scholars and actual working of the constitution have shown that the polity is unique in its formation. It is neither completely unitary nor federal in its nature.

The Indian constitution provides all features that are essential for a federal structure, i.e. supremacy of the constitution. A state derives its existence from the constitution itself, including all powers be it executive, legislative or judicial, dual government there is a central government and a government at the state level, third, distribution of power central government and state exercise their legislative and executive power assigned to them under the constitution, and the courts are the final arbiter of any disputes. However, lately, it has been seen that the Union is trying to upset the balance which is to be maintained under the constitution.

The 42nd amendment was a watershed moment in the theoretical dilution of federal structure in India whereby a large number of subjects on which the states previously had autonomy were altered. For example, entry 2A was introduced, empowering the Union to deploy armed forces in a state, which can be seen in action now when BJP MLAs in West Bengal have been given central security cover. Similarly, forests, previously an exclusive subject for states (entry 19), was transferred to the concurrent list (entry 17A), resulting in the central government passing laws on forests, thereby taking away the autonomy of the States in dealing with this natural resource.

Also read: Centres Tussle With Bengal Over Chief Secretary Reeks of Uncooperative Federalism

The recent developments have, in a way, made this structural imbalance painfully apparent. The National Education Policy, GST, Farming Laws, Centre-run schemes are some of the recent forays of the Centre into territory perhaps best kept confined to the states. Even vaccine distribution during the COVID-19 pandemic has suffered from this upset in the federal balance where the Centres inability to distribute vaccines to all the states was met with widespread criticism, and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud remarked in court that, Article 1 says that Bharat is a Union of States. When the Constitution says that, then we follow the federal rule. Then Government of India has to procure the vaccines and distribute it. Individual States are left in a lurch.

A recent example of weakening federalism is the Centres order attaching West Bengals chief secretary to the Centre with immediate effect, a development that came hours after the chief minister of the state did not attend a meeting with the PM on reviewing Cyclone Yaas.

Another example is the National Education Policy 2020 which has been criticised for excessive centralisation. Federalism requires that states and the Centre work on an equal footing to determine policies. However, the NEPs visions of a central agency to test and regulate educational institutions have taken away the powers from states. Since it was felt that states are best placed to determine the requirement of its subjects, education was made as a state subject at the outset. The centralisation of the medical entrance exam (NEET) was even been challenged by Tamil Nadu.

The consequences of such centralisation can be very destructive and demoralising for students from rural areas who are taught a state board syllabus. In the Tamil Nadu case, it is unfortunate that the 17-year-old Dalit medical-aspirant who had challenged NEET was unable to secure admission in a medical college, despite scoring 98% in her board examination and died by suicide.

The Constitution of India. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

The 102nd amendment to the Indian constitution inserted Articles 338B and 342A into the constitution. Article 338B set up a National Commission for Backward Classes and Article 342A vested the power to notify a class as a backward class. In the case of the Maratha Reservation matter, a constitution bench of the Supreme Court held that after the 102nd amendment, the states no longer had any power to determine backward classes.

Also read: Centres Flawed Vaccination Policy Will Turn States Against Each Other

Though it is true that India is not a strictly federal nation, rather it is a quasi-federal state with asymmetric federalism, where more power is concentrated in the hands of the Centre. In the constituent assembly debates, Dr Ambedkar stated that the constitution is both unitary as well as federal according to the requirement of time and circumstances. In many judgments, the Supreme Court has emphasised on the importance of pragmatic federalism, stating that pragmatic federalism is a form of federalism which incorporates the traits and attributes of sensibility and realism. Pragmatic federalism, for achieving the constitutional goals, leans on the principle of permissible practicability.

It is useful to state that pragmatic federalism has the inbuilt ability to constantly evolve to changing needs and situations. It is this dynamic nature of pragmatic federalism which makes it apt for a body polity like ours to adopt. The foremost object of the said concept is to come up with innovative solutions to problems that emerge in a federal setup of any kind, the Supreme Court observed in Government of NCT of Delhi vs. Union of India (UOI) and Ors.

Even though it may be argued that our quasi-federal structure and the emphasis on pragmatic federalism allows the Centre to take up more and more powers away from the state, it is important to analyse the effect of such action. This growing encroachment of central government is worrying as it steps on the toes of the states that are best placed to make decisions within certain spheres, being in touch with the real state of affairs and having more knowledge about their unique social, economic and cultural landscapes. The Centre is often a meddlesome outsider that is out of touch with the real picture.

Along with pragmatic federalism, what needs to be examined is the concept of maintaining the federal balance. The idea is that the power of the Centre is to be limited to subjects that concern the nation as a whole, while states are free to pursue their local interests in the way they desire. As succinctly stated by the Supreme Court Pin I.T.C. Limited vs. The Agricultural Produce Market Committee and Ors.: The fact that under the scheme of our Constitution, greater power is conferred upon the center vis-a-vis the States does not mean that States are mere appendages of the center. Within the sphere allotted to them, States are supreme. The center cannot tamper with their powers. The unchecked and ever-increasing centralisation is upsetting the federal balance upon which the well-being of our citizen rests.

Also read: The Great GST Impasse Threatens Indias Federal Structure

Therefore, it is the need of the hour for the Centre to rein in its expanding powers and leave matters such as education in the hands of the states which know best where and how the resources should be channeled.

N.R. Elango is a senior advocate and a DMK MP of Rajya Sabha andAmit Anand Tiwari is an Advocate on Record practicing in the Supreme Court of India.

Link:

By Upsetting Balance of Federalism, the Centre Is Playing a Dangerous Game - The Wire

When the Articles of Confederation proved inadequate for dealing with the critical problems left after the 1783 armistice with England, the leading colonists advocated a national meeting of colonial delegates to amend the Articles.

After several years of jerks and starts, the 1787 convention came to order and 55 delegates worked through the steamy Philadelphia summer to negotiate solutions for the weaknesses of the Confederation.

Horse-and-Buggy Government

The creation of federalism by granting specific powers to the federal government and reserving all other powers to the states worked quite well for the first decades when horse-and-buggy was the means of transportation and most business was local.

As time passed, the Supreme Court was asked to take a second look at the traditional interpretations of the commerce clause, the general welfare clause, equal protection clause, among others. So the definition of federalism has been expanded to deal with new unforeseen problems arising out of nationalization of the country.

America Is Nationalized

However, the American economy, society and culture have become so national that the fragmentation of a 1787 federal system no longer serves the people adequately. The structure of the government ought to facilitate, rather than delay or obstruct the prosperity and happiness of the people.

At the present time, groups have come into existence with the goal of changing the Constitution. A number of states have signed on to the proposal to have two-thirds of the state legislatures call a constitutional convention. Other folks want to junk the Electoral College for direct election of the president.

Convention Suggestions

Then there are others that want to reverse the Supreme Court decision declaring corporations people for purposes of contributing to campaigns. Another group wants a convention limited to adding an amendment requiring a balanced budget at the federal level.

Support and opposition to all of these convention proposals has been bipartisan with the John Birch Society and the Eagle Forum against and the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council in favor. States have been so divided on the proposals that they have been withdrawing their consent as fast as new supporters have appeared.

Most of the dialogue about forcing a call of various conventions is not relevant to the greater question of redesigning the national government to manifest the national complexion of our economy and society. National issues have become more important than state issues.

Federalism Failed

The failure of federalism is well documented by our recent experience with the muddled management of COVID-19 at all levels of government. President Donald Trump put federalism to the test when he delegated the COVID-19 pandemic to the states.

States became enemies as they tried to outbid each other for medical supplies needed to fight COVID-19. Then the federal government got into the act and was competing with the states.

Responses to the pandemic varied radically from one state to the next. Some states closed their doors to out-of-staters. Masking rules were inconsistence, with governors fighting local governments.

Good Road Show

It would have made a great road show but the cast was too big.

It would be funny except some experts estimate that federalism and its implementers caused 300,000 of the COVID deaths.

A federal system spawns a lot of piecemeal policy. Because federalism requires the mobilization of a high level public support, processes are slow and cumbersome.

But just as in the days of the Articles of Confederation we are now faced with problems that are not being solved in a federal system.

It will take a national government to develop universal health care, to cope with earth warming, to respond effectively to natural disaster, to finance the infrastructure, to secure equal rights for all, and to cope with unforeseen crises.

All of these will require a greater sense of community.

Read the original:

United States has outgrown federalism | Columnists | willistonherald.com - Williston Daily Herald

June 5 marks the first anniversary of the New Delhi ordinances that later became the controversial farm laws. The farming community agitating nationwide against these laws it says will destroy farming and food security plans to observe the day as Sampoorna Kranti Diwas, or Total Revolution Day.

The term instantly reminds one of the similar call given on the same day in 1974 by the iconic political leader Jayaprakash Narayan that had kickstarted a tumultuous movement resulting in the ouster three years later of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Hectic preparations are on at the ground level in states like Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where hundreds of vehicles have been leaving for Delhi, where a show of strength is planned at the protest sites at the gates of the national capital.

Farmer collectives, progressive groups, trade unions and civil society organisations are also observing Sampoorna Kranti Divas across the states.

We plan to burn copies of the controversial legislations outside the homes and offices of legislators, members of parliament and ministers from the Bharatiya Janata Party along with those from its allies. Thereafter, there will be marches to the offices of the subdivisional magistrates and district magistrates for handing over memorandums to the government, said Narayan Dutt of the Inquilabi Kendra Punjab.

At places where there is negligible presence of the BJP leadership, like several small towns in Punjab, copies of the anti-people farm legislations will be consigned to the flames outside the offices of the district magistrates, he said.

He added that a large number of jathas or companies of farmers are streaming to Delhi to join the protests there.

The umbrella Samyukta Kisan Morcha appealled meanwhile to people everywhere to help make the event a success by extending their support:

From time to time, the call of SKM has been strongly supported by the citizens. On the Sampoorna Kranti Diwas, farmers, labourers and citizens are requested to take up the call against the Narendra Modi government and make it a mass movement forcing the government to repeal the farm laws.

The appeal was made on May 29, the death anniversary of former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, who was also a towering farmers leader. The SKM stated:

The distrust of farmers in this government reminds the farmers of Chaudhary Charan Singh, who faithfully put every problem and pain of the farmers before the society and the government and ultimately resolved it. Today, the Modi government is proving to be a corporates party where it does not listen to the farmers and labourers.

Having won a moral victory through their struggle that has seen them camp at the borders of the capital for more than six months, braving bone chilling winters and several bouts of cyclonic rains, besides the police oppression coming from governments held by the BJP, the farmers believe they have successfully made this a multi-dimensional movement.

The biggest achievement of this movement has been that the ruling dispensation is being forced to pay a political cost, as was evident in the results of the recent West Bengal assembly polls where the farmers had campaigned and made the masses aware of the struggle they had undertaken, said Narayan Dutt.

Before this it was unthinkable. This movement is not just about the controversial farm laws. Through this movement people have understood the rising prices of petrol and diesel, the damages that the amendments to the labour laws would bring about, what the sale of the public sector units would spell for the country and where the continuing moves of privatization would lead to, Dutt told The Citizen.

Even beyond these issues, many have observed that the movement has brought issues of patriarchy and federalism to the centre of debates. The prominent participation of women in the protests has been a very positive sign, as the Green Revolution states are known for their patriarchal mindsets and practices.

On the issue of federalism playing out as a strong undercurrent in the movement, Jagjit Kaur of Bhawanigarh near Sangrur, who is better known as Nikki among the progressive youth activists of Punjab, has come out with a very powerful song Punjab vs Delhi Farmers Protest:

Released just a few days ago, the song expresses the anguish of Punjab at the usurping of their resources by the Centre. It talks about the Partition that was enforced on the land, where even its waters were divided. It says that Punjab has always fed the country, only to be cheated by Delhi.

Federalism has definitely been a powerful sentiment throughout this movement. The cultural artists were presented with an environment where they had to contribute their bit, singer-songwriter Nikki told The Citizen.

The other aspect has been the role reversal in terms of gender. Men who would not even pick up a glass of water at home have served at langars throughout. This is bound to result in some small change back home also, she added.

When we had arrived at the protest sites at the gates of Delhi, people used to look at us in a way that conveyed that this was not a place for women. But all this has changed over the months.

Not only have women been equal participants but their participation has been accepted and acknowledged in the rural society across the states. Their presence has definitely made a difference.

Cover Photograph Danish Pandit

Excerpt from:

Farmers Observe Unity in Federalism - The Citizen

By Ogoti Bokombe.

Federalism in Africa is mirrored in negative images around micro-nationalisms manifested in ethnicity and religious fundamentalism. The divide and rule colonial legacy has taken center stage in modern-day political decentralization in Africa, stocking both carrots and sticks for the central governments against starved peripheral regional states.

In Africa Nigeria, Ethiopia and South Africa are some of the established federal states, Somalia is also building a nation of a fragile federal system.

The Horn of Africa has a fragile political, economic, social and security system in which central governments seek to assert authority, consolidate power by centralizing it through abstract federalization of the states.

The fragile federalism that exists in the Horn of Africa is due to the existence of multiple micro-nationalisms that persistently compete with national sovereignty and the rise in authoritarianism seeking to counter rise in opposition in federal autonomies. Federalism is increasingly been used as the tool to distort democratic ideals by suffocating efforts of consensus-building between central and periphery governments.

The onset of COVID-19, has uncovered the fragile enterprise that is federalism in the authoritarian horn of Africa region. Arbitral election postponements, political reforms and targeted force have brought to fore the persistent commitment of weakening federal autonomies.

In 2018 Prime Minister Abiy reign in Ethiopia promised reforms to the political and economic spheres, seeking to entrench liberalization, democracy and an Ethiopian nationalism ideology. In his tracks, he sought to underplay the ethnic federalism that has existed in the Horn of Africas most populous nation with over 90 ethnic groups. Ethiopia is divided into nine ethnic federal states; Amhara, Oromia, Tigray, Somali, Sidama, Afar, Gambela, Harari, and the Southern Nations or Peoples and the Benishagul Gumuz regions. Though meant to achieve peace in parts it has bred divisions, ethnic mobilization and competition for the seat in Addis.

In 2019, Abiys administration had to deal with call for greater representation in the national government and autonomy in Oromo, an attempted coup in Amhara and Sidama zones quest for a regional state out of Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region (SNNPR). These challenged Abiys reform agenda of building an Ethiopian nation. He responded by deploying forces to crackdown on dissidents and protestors, leading to arbitral arrests of key leaders such as Jawar Mohammed of the Oromo Federalist Congress and loss of lives and property.

Politically, in December 2019 PM Abiy unveiled the Prosperity Party dissolving the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPDRF) a coalition of four regional ethnic parties namely the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), Amhara Democratic Party (ADP), Oromo Democratic Party (ODP), and the Southern Ethiopian Peoples Democratic Party (SEPDM).

TPLF rejected the move to dissolve the EPDRF, and refused to join the new Prosperity Party as this would dilute its stranglehold on power for three decades in Ethiopia. Nationally, the merger centralizes power and seeks to control calls for autonomy and gradually weakens the federal structure in Ethiopia while consolidating power for Abiy.

The Ethiopian National Elections Board postponed parliamentary elections scheduled for August 2020 due to coronavirus pandemic a move that was rejected by parties not allied with Abiys Prosperity Party. The Tigray Peoples Liberation Front defied Ethiopias election postponement citing inadequate consultation and held elections in Tigray, garnering 98% of the seats in Tigray. Abiy termed the elections as unconstitutional, instituted funding and communication blockades on Tigray and appointed new leaders for the region. This situation gave Abiy feet to fight what he terms lawlessness by flaming a conflict with the TPLF.

On November 4, 2020, Abiy deployed troops to the Tigray region in response to an alleged attack by the TPLF on a military base in the region. The military action has resulted in thousands of deaths and over 60,000 refugee outflow to the neighbouring Sudan.

Abiys reform agenda is devoid of political consensus, even as he seeks to bring ethnicities together. His tactics include weakening existing federal regional government while repressing any call for autonomy, this is done by seeking to centralize power and plant loyalists through the Prosperity Party in the upcoming 2021 elections.

Somalias federal project as instituted in 2004, under domestic will and external interests for a stable but weak Somalia, and as a solution to Somalias instability has created room for authoritarian rule and more instability.

In her search for democracy and stability, Somalia has failed to build consensus between federal member states and Villa Somalia. President Farmaajos reign borrows from Abiys commitment to weaken federalism in Ethiopia as they both eye second terms on the wheels.

Somalias transition to democracy is locked in an impasse due to incompatibilities between Farmajos federal government and member states on resource and power sharing, election modalities and constitutional reforms as we as the squabbles in the Jubbaland, Puntland and Somaliland elections. The control of regional forces by Federal Member States has also dealt a blow to the federal dream of building one nation. It has pitted regional forces against the Somalia National Army in the center- periphery squabbles as in the case of the clash between Jubbaland forces and Somalias security forces in Bula Hawo in January 2021.

The incompatibilities have led to delayed elections and Farmaajos term extension beyond February 8, 2021 due to electoral impasse.

Further, the federal system and the security situation in Somalia has proved to be divisionary in regional geo-politics for instance in the tensions that exist in Kenya-Somalia diplomatic relations. Kenya values Jubbaland as a buffer-zone to its security, Jubbaland President Madobe is Kenyas ally and Farmaajos foe, a situation that complicates the relations between Kenya and Somalia.

Sudans authoritarian history depicts the dangers of authoritarianism on federalism as a tool to exert power and its unexpected shift to breed division of the South from the North and sustained conflicts in war torn Darfur, Kordofan and Blue Nile.

Unlike Ethiopias ethno-federalism, Sudans tale is one of federalism based on micro-nationalisms in religion in the form of Islamist versus Christian southerners and even racial/ethnic manifested in Arab dominance in Khartoum against non-Arabs. These factors led to the ultimate divorce of the larger Sudan with the South Sudan. South Sudan has also taken a similar route, with persisting disagreements on the number of states and their leadership between Vice President Riek Machar and President Kiirs camps.

In Sudan, truce is eminent with the overthrow of Bashir and the quick steps by the transitional government to sign a peace deal with rebel groups in the Southern regions. The transitional process has seen the appointment of former rebel leaders to positions such as the appointment of the Gibril Ibrahim who led the Justice and Equality Movement to Sudans finance docket as minister.

Historical authoritarianism in the Horn of Africa has ingrained federalism as the partial satisfaction of ethno-nationalisms, while the center wields the power and influence to manipulate political institutions and systems for Machiavellian interests.

Political reforms and institutions in the Horn of Africa should redirect the true purpose of federalism to socio-economic development, nation-building through embracing national consensus and collaboration. Federalism should not only cuddle and satisfy micro-nationalism but also enhance sub-national development and emancipation.

The author is a policy analyst on international affairs.

See the original post:

Authoritarianism and its fragile blend with federalism in the Horn of Africa - Capital FM Kenya

On May 30, the West Bengal state committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) came up with its assessment of the assembly election results, in which the party won no seats. The document explaining this disaster states that most of the 32 seats won by the Left Front in 2016 have gone to Trinamool Congress (TMC) 23, to be precise.

At one point, the document says, in Bengali, Because of the Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJPs) aggressive words, Trinamools election rigging, corruption, anarchy in every sector, absence of democracy etc. could not become electoral issues. People chose Trinamool Congress as the main opposition to the BJP. In addition, Trinamool was able to use the welfare schemes to garner support. There was extreme polarisation between Trinamool Congress and BJP. That is probably the main reason behind this result.

This is as candid an admission of being wrong as you would get from the CPI(M). The West Bengal leadership has been maintaining since 2011 that the BJP and TMC are two sides of the same coin, so they have often dismissed governor Jagdeep Dhankhars attempts to overstep his jurisdiction and Mamata Banerjees sharp reaction to these moves as drama. This document shows that the CPI(M) is ready to rethink the political line that regards both TMC and BJP equally harmful. The fact that the welfare schemes CPI(M) leaders called doles during the election campaign have been marked as reasons for TMCs popular support is a significant shift.

One may have expected this document to impact the partys behaviour, but this doesnt seem to be happening at the moment. Case in point is the ongoing battle between Banerjees and Narendra Modis governments.

Senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty has termed the Centres decision to unilaterally transfer chief secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay as vindictive, but added that the chief secretarys role has been reduced to that of a ghatak (matchmaker) under the TMC government.Earlier in May, ministers of the state were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a case where the chargesheet had already been submitted. CPI(M)s Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Bhattacharya, a lawyer, wasted no time in saying the arrests were fair. The Calcutta high courts subsequent interim bail order, however, made it clear that it is not as straightforward as Bhattacharya made it sound. Even the CPI(M)s official stance differed from his, but he has neither been censured for his comments nor asked to explain them.

This proves there is still no consensus in the party ranks about the ways to deal with the TMC, and the CPI(M) does not regard the BJPs repeated attempts to destabilise the West Bengal government as a threat to federalism but as a usual political tussle between TMC and BJP. During the election campaign, the Left-Congress-Indian Secular Front combine had talked about the need to break the TMC-BJP binary. It looks like the CPI(M) itself is still stuck in that binary, and does not recognise the greater issues at play. It would not be out of context to delve into history at this point.

Also read: Is This the End of the Road for the CPI(M) in Bengal?

The party at the Centre trying to destabilise an opposition partys state government is not new. The first party at the receiving end was the undivided Communist Party of India (CPI). The Kerala government led by its legendary leader E.M.S. Namboodiripad was toppled in 1959, and finding out how many times Indira Gandhis government used Article 356 of the Constitution could exhaust a seasoned statistician. But the BJPs consistency and determination in breaking the back of federalism is unparalleled.

What is happening in Bengal is basically the logical progression of what began with the dilution of Article 370 and bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir. It continued with passing a law that makes the Arvind Kejriwal government subservient to the Lieutenant Governor. The arrests and the fight over the chief secretary are not attacks on the chief minister or the TMC. These are attacks on the rights of state governments and the political courtesies governing Centre-state relationship. This is about showing whos boss.

Jyoti Basu. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

This is exactly what the Jyoti Basu-led Left front government fought against in the 1980s. Basu maintained all along that the Centre was not in charge, and states should be on equal footing. His cry was not just for a bigger share of the Centres revenue; his was a principled stand for all states. Then state finance minister Ashok Mitra was his mainstay in this fight. It was as much a demand for more administrative rights as economic independence; thats why they found other non-Congress chief ministers like Ramakrishna Hegde, M.G. Ramachandran, N.T. Rama Rao and Farooq Abdullah by their side. They held two meetings in 1983, in Srinagar and Kolkata, and a sub-committee was formed to draft a list of demands. Mitra led that sub-committee. Their commitment to the cause is best proved by the case of Jammu and Kashmir.

On July 2, 1984, governor Jagmohan dismissed the National Conference government led by Farooq. The then Karnataka chief minister, Hegde, chaired a meeting with non-Congress leaders at Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi. The resolution release afterwards criticised the Centre for murdering democracy in Kashmir. A delegation reached Srinagar the next day to express solidarity with Abdullah and the people of J&K. Mitra recalls in his memoirs that Basu directed him to be present at the meeting in New Delhi and join the delegation to Srinagar. Delivering a speech to the public gathered in front of the National Conference office, he writes, was one of his fondest memories.

But senior CPI(M) leader Mohammad Salim, while speaking to this writer, confirmed that his party views the ongoing conflict purely as a partisan issue. Theres no question of federalism here, he declared. This is just the governments using their agencies against each other. Only the leftists think about federalism. Our party has fought for it in the past, we wanted Sarkaria Commissions recommendations implemented. Neither the TMC nor BJP has ever thought about federalism. The bickering over the Narada accused or the chief secretary is nothing but the failed states attempt to divert the headlines. Mamata has failed to provide relief to people after Cyclone Yaas, the Centre hasnt done anything either. Thats why the chief secretary is being made an issue. Similarly, when people needed vaccines and they couldnt provide it, they fought over the Narada-accused leaders.

In reality, though, the fight for federalism was put on the back burner while the CPI(M) was still in power. Mitra writes in Apila Chapila (translation by the author), After I left Writers Buildings [he resigned in 1987 for reasons not relevant to this article], I found the West Bengal government has suddenly become a good boy. Theres no overdraft, spending is well within the scope of earnings, so the budget is zero deficit. My unequivocal opinion is, this complete change of stance is highly incompatible with the state governments approach. Fat overdraft indicated the states are struggling because of the one-sided relationship with the Centre. Doing away with it means announcing to the world that all problems have been solved, theres no financial constraint. Now we can sleep peacefully.

Mitra wrote this in the early 2000s. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) was not yet in existence. There is hardly any dispute today that the GST has further tilted the scales in favour of the Central government. And the chairman of the GST council that is credited with planning everything was Asim Dasgupta, Mitras successor in Basus cabinet. He resigned from the council in 2011, but by his own admission, 80% of the job had already been done.Dasguptas contribution was even acknowledged by then Union finance minister Arun Jaitley when the GST was launched in 2017.

The decay of the Left as an opposition has had huge implications for West Bengal, and the job of turning this seems to be getting harder by the day. A strong right-wing party has now become the only opposition in a state famous for its secular, socialist ethos. The CPI(M), still the biggest leftist party in terms of number of members, has no time to waste if they are to stay relevant. State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has already said he does not want to put up a candidate against Mamata Banerjee in the by-election at Bhowanipore. If Chowdhurys party agrees with his proposal, it may mean curtains on the Left-Congress combine. In that case, comrades have a long fight ahead. What are they doing to ensure it is not a lonely one?

Also read: Continuity of Government Is a New Challenge for the Kerala Left

The state committees statement mentioned at the beginning of this article had said, To turn this primary review into a comprehensive one, discussions will have to be held and opinions sought at the booth and branch level. At the moment, the CP(M) is distributing a questionnaire among its workers and supporters via the district committees to do that. It has two sets of questions, under the heads political and organisational. The first three questions in the first set are all about the partys policy regarding the TMC:

1. Is it really true that there was strong anti-incumbency against the TMC before the elections? Did we overestimate that sentiment? Did we underestimate Trinamool Congress?

2. Did people reject our campaign about the understanding between the TMC and BJP? Which party was our main target across the election campaign? TMC or BJP? Or did we maintain equidistance?

3. How have the welfare schemes and subsidies from the TMC government impacted the recipients? Have we assessed that?

The answers, and whether the leadership is willing to make changes according to them, could hold the key to the CPI(M)s future in West Bengal.

A section of the party, however, feels where they stand vis--vis Banerjee or the BJP is irrelevant. What matters is whether they can still identify with the poor and have the stomach to fight for issues that affect them. This view is best articulated in an article written in Bengali by young trade union leader and Darjeeling district committee member Sudip Dutta, for party mouthpiece Ganashakti: We have to go to the rural and urban poor, and get the strength for class struggle from them. The most promising strategy for modern revolution is hidden amongst this socio-economic populace divided into innumerable groups.

Pratik Bandyopadhyay is an independent journalist.

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Has the CPI(M) Forgotten its Strong Federal Roots? - The Wire