Spirit of federalism is forgotten: Oppn
22 PARTIES MEET Opposition seeks reversal of ‘unilateral decisions’, lockdown exit plan
NEWDELHI: Alleging that the Centre has “unabashedly usurped powers” vested in states, and undermined “the constitutionally guaranteed federal democracy”, 22 opposition parties on Friday presented an 11-point charter of demands to the Union government to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic distress resulting from the national lockdown.
These demands include a direct cash transfer of ₹7,500 to all families outside the income tax bracket and the immediate restoration of parliamentary functioning and oversight.
At the end of what was its first meeting after the lockdown was imposed, the Opposition sharply criticised the Centre’s handling of the pandemic — with Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who chaired the meeting, alleging that power was concentrated in the Prime Minister’s Office and the “spirit of federalism, which is an integral part of our Constitution, is all but forgotten”.
BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar dismissed the allegations and said opposition parties were continuing with negative politics.
NEW DELHI: Alleging that the Centre has “unabashedly usurped powers” vested in states, and undermined “the constitutionally guaranteed federal democracy”, 22 opposition parties on Friday presented a 11-point charter of demands to the Union government to deal with the coronavirus disease pandemic and the economic distress resulting from the national lockdown.
These demands include a direct cash transfer of ₹7,500 to all families outside the income tax bracket and the immediate restoration of parliamentary functioning and oversight.
At the end of what was its first meeting after the lockdown was imposed on March 25, the Opposition sharply criticised the government’s handling of the pandemic — with Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who chaired the meeting, alleging that power was concentrated in the Prime Minister’s Office, there was disregard for the plight of migrant workers, and the lockdown had been initiated with no exit plan.
In a statement at the end of the meeting held through video-conferencing, the “like-minded parties” said they believe that this is neither the time for the central government to indulge in showmanship nor one-upmanship.
“It is important that the Centre reaches out and engages in a dialogue with all political parties in a systematic manner, listen seriously to the suggestions that we have to make, activate parlia mentary institutions like standing committees, and be genuine in helping the states,” the statement added.
The meeting was attended by former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Deve Gowda; Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha’s Hemant Soren; National Conference leader Omar Abdullah; Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar; Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) chief MK Stalin and Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, among others.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi also participated in the meetings along with other senior Congress leaders.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) skipped the meeting despite being invited. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was not invited.
The Opposition has demanded, among other measures, reversal of all unilateral policy decisions, particularly the annulment of labour laws; communication of the Centre’s exit strategy from the lockdown; and a meaningful economic strategy focused on revival and poverty alleviation.
Earlier, the Congress president, in her opening remarks, said, “It seems that the virus is here to stay until a vaccine is found. I am also of the view that the government was uncertain about the criteria for lockdowns, nor does it have an exit strategy. Successive lockdowns have yielded diminishing returns.”
“The government has abandoned any pretence of being a democratic government. All power is now concentrated in one office, the PMO. The spirit of federalism, which is an integral part of our Constitution, is all but forgotten,” Gandhi said.
Thackeray blamed the Centre for doing politics, even as states run by the opposition parties were cooperating with the Centre. Banerjee also said that this was not the time to do politics or discriminate between states, according to a person familiar with the meeting proceedings.
Pawar said the state governments are relaxing the conditions of lockdown but factories are not in a position to resume as workers have migrated to the villages. “We need to strategise to bring them back,” he said.
The BJP dismissed the Opposition’s claims and allegations.
Union minister Prakash Javadekar said, “The Congress and their allies used to question the central government about why the lockdown has not been extended and now they are asking why the lockdown is being extended...,” he said.
Mumbai-based political analyst Abhay Deshpande said the meeting represented an attempt by the opposition parties to form a pressure group to ensure adequate financial aid from the central government to non-BJP ruled states. “They want to collectively put pressure on the Centre to give adequate assistance to opposition-ruled states,” he said.