Seventy-two retired civil servants have urged Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to restore the remit of the Kurian Joseph Committee on Union-State relations, arguing that its discontinuation raises questions about the state government’s commitment to decentralising power to Gram Panchayats and municipalities.
The appeal was made in a letter by the Constitutional Conduct Group, a collective of former members of the All-India Services and Central Services from across India. The group asked the Chief Minister to allow the High-Level Committee, chaired by former Supreme Court judge Kurian Joseph, to complete Part II of its report.
According to the letter, the former civil servants said they found it difficult to identify a compelling justification for the government’s decision to discontinue the committee. Their intervention places the committee’s dissolution within a larger debate over the division of constitutional functions between the Union, states and local government institutions.
The group said the decision raised concerns about whether the government fully supported the idea of a federal democracy in which powers are devolved to the lowest levels of governance. It specifically referred to Gram Panchayats and municipalities, institutions responsible for delivering several public services and administering local areas.
The letter also alleged that the decision could indicate a reluctance to displease the Union government and the ruling party at the Centre. It described centralisation of constitutional functions as an issue that could affect the balance between different levels of government. These assertions were made by the Constitutional Conduct Group in its representation to the Chief Minister.
The committee’s proposed work is linked to the institutional relationship between the Union and the states. While the letter does not provide details of the committee’s earlier findings or specify the contents of Part II, the demand for completing the report indicates that the retired officials view the unfinished work as relevant to the future distribution of powers.
For municipalities and Gram Panchayats, the issue is significant because decentralisation determines how much authority local bodies exercise over planning, public works, civic services and local administration. The letter did not cite specific municipal or panchayat decisions affected by the committee’s discontinuation, nor did it provide financial or administrative details about the proposed restoration.
The former civil servants urged the Chief Minister to affirm the government’s commitment to a strong federal democracy and to the devolution of powers to local government institutions. The next step rests with the state government, which would have to decide whether to restore the committee’s remit and permit it to complete the remaining part of its report.
