NEW DELHI: Alleging that the Centre was steadily encroaching upon the powers of the states, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin on Tuesday announced the formation of a high-level committee to examine state autonomy, headed by retired Supreme Court judge Kurian Joseph.
The panel will undertake a detailed study of the relationship between the Union and state governments with the aim of safeguarding state autonomy.
It is expected to submit an interim report in January 2026 and a final report with recommendations within two years, Stalin informed the state assembly.
The committee will also include former bureaucrat Ashok Vardhan Shetty and former vice-chairman of the State Planning Commission, M Naganathan, as members.
“The committee will study, as per the law, to transfer those subjects that went from the State List to the Concurrent List,” the chief minister said, further highlighting that the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) was outside the jurisdiction of the states.
The newly formed committee, tasked with examining state autonomy, will conduct research and submit an interim report to the state government by January 2026. The final report is expected to be completed by 2028.
“This committee will carry out research and provide recommendations to strengthen the relationship between the state and the Union government,” Stalin said during his address in the state assembly.
Reiterating his opposition to the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) and the three-language formula under the National Education Policy (NEP), the chief minister said NEET had resulted in the loss of many student lives.
“We have lost many students due to NEET exam. We have continuously opposed NEET exam. In the name of the triple language policy, the Union Government is trying to impose Hindi in Tamil Nadu.
Since we have denied NEP, Rs 2500 crore to the state has not been released by the Union Government,” Stalin said.
He also urged that education be made an exclusive subject of the states, calling for the reversal of the 42nd Constitutional Amendment which had moved education to the Concurrent List.
The chief minister’s remarks come in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that Governor RN Ravi’s decision to withhold assent to ten re-enacted bills was “illegal and erroneous in law.”
On April 8, a bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan stated, “Action of the Governor to reserve the 10 bills for the President is illegal and arbitrary, and thus the action is set aside. All actions taken by the Governor thereto for the 10 bills are set aside. The 10 bills shall be deemed to be clear from the date it was re-presented to the Governor.”