Instead of the high constitutional ideal of cooperative federalism, the Centre-State ties are veering towards “coercive federalism”, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said in a letter to his Tamil Nadu counterpart M K Stalin while hailing him on the “Report of the High-Level Committee on Union-State Relations”.Karnataka shares the concerns flagged by the committee headed by Justice Kurian Joseph and believes that all states must “irrespective of political affiliations, join hands in constructive federal dialogue”, while the Centre should provide an institutional platform for such engagement, Siddaramaiah wrote in his March 2 letter to Stalin in response to the Tamil Nadu CM’s letter forwarding the report.Advertisement“What was intended as cooperative federalism has increasingly resembled coercive federalism. The spirit of Article 246 read with the Seventh Schedule, and the delicate symmetry envisioned under Articles 245 to 254, now calls for principled recalibration,” the Congress CM told the DMK supremo, referring to the first part of the Justice Kurian Joseph panel report submitted to the latter recently.“We have consistently emphasised that fiscal federalism must align authority with responsibility,” Siddaramaiah stated. “Articles 268 to 281, read with the role of the Finance Commission under Article 280 and the GST framework under Article 279A, cannot operate in a manner that dilutes the fiscal sovereignty of states.”Karnataka, like Tamil Nadu, has been vocal in asserting the constitutional rights of states on language policy, education, health, fiscal devolution and legislative autonomy, Siddaramaiah’s letter noted. “At this juncture, I believe it is imperative that all states, irrespective of political affiliations, join hands in constructive federal dialogue. Federal renewal cannot be a solitary endeavour of one or two states; it must emerge as a collective articulation.”AdvertisementThe objective of the states is not to weaken the Union but to ensure that national energy is focused on genuinely national priorities and that states are trusted with spheres constitutionally entrusted to them, he said, echoing a position articulated by Stalin.The Centre must provide an institutional platform for states to deliberate on federalism — “whether through a revitalised Inter-State Council under Article 263, a special conclave of Chief Ministers, or a structured constitutional review dialogue… where states can place their recommendations formally, transparently, and deliberatively,” he said.“The absence of such structured engagement has contributed to the perception that cooperative federalism has receded from lived practice. A mature federation thrives on negotiated accommodation rather than unilateral assertion,” Siddaramaiah said.“Unity in a diverse republic like India is sustained not through uniformity, but through constitutional trust. Our federal compact must evolve from hierarchical supervision to collaborative partnership; from central predominance to coordinated pluralism; from competitive grievance to shared governance,” he said.“Karnataka stands ready to engage constructively with Tamil Nadu and other like-minded states in advancing an informed national conversation on restoring balance to our Union-State relationship,” he wrote.In April 2025, Stalin, citing concerns over the erosion of state powers, had announced the formation of a three-member committee, headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Kurian Joseph, to review the Centre-State relationship and suggest measures to reinforce the constitutional rights of states.1971 Centre-states panelThe Justice Kurian Joseph panel report is modelled on the 1971 report of the Centre-State Relations Enquiry Committee, or the Rajamannar Committee, submitted to then Tamil Nadu CM M Karunanidhi.“Soon after the Constitution began to work, there was a growing realisation of the strong domination of the Centre not only on general policies but also in spheres exclusively belonging to the states, and of the tendency on the part of the Centre to exercise control over the states, drastically affecting their autonomy,” the 1971 committee had observed, in the context of the then Congress-ruled Centre and the states.Opposition-ruled statesMore than five decades later, several non-BJP governments, particularly in southern India, are calling for coordinated action to counter what they describe as over-centralisation of financial powers by the BJP-led central government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which is now in its third term.Finance ministers from five non-BJP-ruled states — Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Punjab — had met on September 12, 2024, in Thiruvananthapuram to discuss issues of “economic federalism” amid consultations of the 16th Finance Commission.“States with higher GSDP per capita, like Karnataka, are being penalised for their economic performance, receiving disproportionately lower tax allocations,” Siddaramaiah had then said.Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu staged protests in Delhi against what they termed increasing centralisation of financial resources under Modi.you may likeAt the September 2024 meeting, discussions centred on raising the states’ share in the divisible pool of central taxes from 41% to 50%, halting the Centre’s increasing reliance on cesses and surcharges, and addressing concerns that the GST regime restricts fiscal autonomy and requires greater flexibility.Tamil Nadu said in 2024 that its share had fallen from 7.93% under the Ninth Finance Commission (FC) to 4.07% under the 15th Finance Commission. Karnataka has said its share declined from 4.71% under the 14th FC to 3.64% under the 15th FC.Karnataka has estimated that losses to its exchequer — due to a reduced share in the divisible tax pool and what it termed faulty implementation of GST — amounted to around Rs 1.87 lakh crore. Despite the Union Budget doubling between 2016-17 and 2022-23, there has been no commensurate rise in grants allocated to the state, Siddaramaiah has said.