Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.
| Photo Credit: S.S. KUMAR
The Supreme Court verdict on the Governor withholding assent to 10 Bills passed by the State Assembly was a victory for federalism, said Chief Minister M.K. Stalin here on Sunday.
“I am proud to say that Tamil Nadu has given to the States freedom from the Union government. The verdict has ensured that the powers of the State will be protected,” he said.
At a meeting to honour the four lawyers who argued the State’s case in the Supreme Court, he said: “Under the powers granted by Article 142 of the Constitution, the Supreme Court had given assent to the 10 Bills that had been kept pending by the Governor. This move of the court had made the entire country bow to the court.”
He felicitated former Attorney General of India Mukul Rohatgi and senior advocates of the Supreme Court Abhishek Singhvi, Rakesh Dwivedi, and P. Wilson, whose arguments won the case on Centre-State relations.
In his address he said: “It is appropriate to term this a celebration of victory instead of felicitation. I have the immense pleasure of felicitating the lawyers who have established the value of federalism. The verdict has defeated the idea that Governors can be used to control the duly elected governments and establish parallel competitive governments to create trouble,” he said.
“It is not a victory just for Tamil Nadu but for people’s rule and the rights of State governments. It a big victory that the court has given a deadline for Governors and the President,” he added.
Mr. Stalin said he was duty-bound to honour the four lawyers who had presented the State’s legal position on the arguments.
“The judgment had given the State the confidence to form a committee for State’s autonomy. The verdict would help the State government win its struggle for autonomy. To strengthen democracy, Peraringnar Anna and Kalaignar (M. Karunanidhi) had designed the slogan autonomy for the State and federal government at the centre,” the Chief Minister said.
Mr. Wilson, Mr. Singhvi, and Mr. Dwivedi also spoke on the way the arguments were presented and the role of the law clerks in helping them fine-tune their arguments.
N. Ram, former editor in-chief of The Hindu, said the judgment was magnificent and inspiring. The media has competently covered it, he said. He said the government had won a significant victory. “If the Governor has any self-respect please resign and go,” he said.
At every stage the Governor had thought it fit to subvert the basic structure of the Constitution, Mr. Ram said. He added that the outcome of the case that Kerala had filed would be equally interesting.
Published – April 28, 2025 12:38 am IST
