Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Paper: Political Processes in India

Lesson: Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and

Accommodation

Lesson Developer: Dr.B R MOHANTY

College/ Department: SGTB Khalsa college Delhi University

Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi

 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Table of Contents

• Introduction

• Politics of Secession

• Demand for secession from Indian union

o Secession in Punjab
o Demand for Dravidnad
o Secessionism in Mizoram
o Secessionism in Nagaland
o Secessionism in Jammu and Kashmir
• Demand for separate statehood within the Indian Union
o Demand for full statehood
o Demand for Autonomy
o Demand for regional Autonomy within a state
• Accommodation
• Indian Context
• Summary
• Questions
• References
• Glossary

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Introduction:

Source;http://uohherald.commuoh.in/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Fed-
620x478.jpg,accessed on 2 March 2016

The Constitution of India is federal in form but unitary in spirit. It has a perfect unitary bias
which is revealed in various necessities of the Constitution. The creator of the Constitution
planned to hit a balance between federalism and unitarianism. The Constitution can be both
unitary as well as federal according to the necessities of time and conditions. In normal
times, it is intended to toil as a federal system. But in times of war, it is so considered as to
make it work as though it was a unitary system. Once the President issues a proclamation
of emergency as he is certified to do, the whole scene can become move and the State
becomes a unitary State." India is federal in normal time and unitary in emergency.

Politics of Secession
Regionalism has been customarily present in India but its appearance as a limiting factor of
Indian politics is a post-independence phenomenon. The fathers of the constitution were
aware of it and they wanted to keep it under control. The demand for separate states in
India, demands for full statehood for different areas, demands for state autonomy and
emphasis on regional interests over national interests are some of the examples which
show how regionalism is quite strong in India. In a positive sense regionalism means love or
one's area of living or a particular region to which one belongs. However in the negative
sense and in its present form regionalism means love for one's region over and above the
country as a whole. The negative view is dangerous from the point of view' of national
integrity.
The process of evolution of Indian federalism has been prejudiced by increase of regional
identities, end of one-party dominant era, and judicial understanding of the Constitution.
Two strict rules have been go behind since Independence in dealing with dissident domestic
ethnic, religious, linguistic, and cultural group demands. All secessionist demands in post-
Independence India obtained significant political power. It is much more able to be seen in
the northeastern part of the country and lately in Punjab and Kashmir.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

There has been a block against allowance of demands for any form of political credit of a
religious community. Religious minorities were free to protect their own law and practice.
Also change has taken place in the major push of centre-state conflicts and disagreement
since Independence. 1 The deliberation of attention are major political tensions within the
ruling party at the centre and tension between it. It was a wide diversity of opposition
parties, which planned more or less reasonable option centre of power in different regions
which are clearly reproduced in the recitation of the centre-state tensions in any given
period.
A matching trend has been shown by economic tensions. Disagreement between the rising
urban and rural working classes and the ruling classes and the following breakdown and
emasculation of the working class organizations due to the shift in logic of development can
be noticed.
Cultural and linguistic distinction has given to the political idiom in determining the centre-
state relations. The political and economic conflicts developed centre-state conflict
magnitude of their own, conflicts connecting linguistic and cultural scope which have
tended to take for granted significance under certain circumstances. Language and culture
are tinted (especially in the regions lying outside the Hindi-speaking heartland of India,
taking on Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan) as features exclusive to the
different 'nationalities' encompassing India. Demands for an unbiased allocation of political
power and privileged admission for the weaker regions to economic belongings are often
implied in the language of anxiety for greater autonomy for the different states as well as
for a more liberal investment of the central plan wealth in regions far away from the
'heartland.'

Value Addition – Know it more

What is Secession?

 Secession is the process through which a new state is created from a mother state
through denial of political obligation to and sovereignty of the alleged state.
 Secession is the technique of breakaway of a state into one or more entities or
territories.
 The newly formed state preceeding secession gets its own identity as well as
international actor only when other states and the UN recognize it.

The alteration in the nature of disagreement and their statement has clearly followed the
pattern of political growth in India. Predominance of the Congress party at both the centre
and state level during the early years of the post-Independence period offered for a unique
mechanism for resolution of such conflicts. However, the Congress supremacy began to
reduce when the party became fewer democratic and more central in later years. The period
of the Congress turn down saw a related observable fact of the augment in strength of
regional or state parties who came to detain power in the states. Their demand for added
autonomy as well as for increasing correct mechanism for the execution of federal features
rising. Yet as the political system required more federalism, the Congress responded with

1
BalveerArora,Negotiating Diffrences:Federal Coalitions and National Cohesion, in Frankel,et .al.(ed)
,Transforming India, p,179.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

less. But an alteration of the party system in the recent times emotionally involved with
form of coalition politics as an average at both the centre and states levels have redrafted
the federal equation in cotemporary times.
The association between India's parliamentary federalism and coalition politics is in some
ways sui generis. The differentiation between national and state parties is not on the basis
of the ground in which they clash. Most of them clash in both assembly and parliamentary
elections. Since the states in India be different vastly in terms of population and size. They
play for different risk in Parliament. With their mounting amount at the national level, they
have been able to diminish the maneuverability and carefulness of the centrist parties. This
has resulted in the reconfiguration of the federal connection in India 2.

Value Addition – Know it better

Understanding of Coalition
A political alliance, also referred to as a political coalition, political bloc, is an agreement for
cooperation between different political parties on common political agenda, often for
purposes of contesting an election to mutually benefit by collectively clearing election
thresholds, or otherwise benefiting from from characteristics of the voting system or for
government formation after elections..

A narrative shift has happened in the economic field also. The trail of progress which India
assumed in the initial years of the post-Independence period has undergone a
transformation now with India undertaking to amendment its economy through
liberalization. Economic reforms and the phenomenon of globalization have demanded
assessment of India's federal system, especially when all the outside layer of federations
now concurrently interrelate with foreign governments and corporations in the global
economy. Present-day India is illustrious by evolution from a planned economy to market
economy, redefinition of the role of the state and importance on devolution.
The customarily obtainable system has been of legitimate separation
of fiscal power of age bracket of resources. But implementation of centralized planning in a
mixed economy structure for social engineering in harmony with entry in the concurrent list-
'Economic and Social Planning'-concentrated economic powers with the centre. Expansion
over the years such as the creation of the Planning Commission, nationalization of major
financial institutions including banking and insurance mutual the financial position of the
centre and improved their political control over the states by irritating the financial
dependence of the states over the centre.
The economic reform in India which started on slowly in the 1980s collected speed its pace
at the beginning of the 1990s under the pressure of an outside crisis. The most visible
component of reforms so far, has been the recreation of various internal and external
controls on private economic activity, the piece of the 'license-permit quota raj' and addition
of India's economy with the rest of the world. Mainly two bunch of groups can be identified.
The first is redrawing of state-market boundaries, financial sector reforms, project of
regulatory powers, infrastructure reform and growth, and privatization. The second is
connected with the reconfiguration of federal institutions themselves such as tax reforms,
reform of centre-state, fiscal transfer mechanisms and local government restructuring.

2
BalrajPuri, The Evolution of Indian Federalism: Strengths and Weaknesses, in L.C.Jain (ed) Decentralization
and Local Governance: Essays for George Mathew (New Delhi) Orient Longman),p 91

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

These restructuring have restricted the role of the State machinery as a 'facilita-
tor' or merely a managerial body.' Developmental planning in India is now no more a control
economy model which called for a enormous interference of the State. With the
restructuring of the State-market relationship which adage an augmented role for the
private players, a release of control by the centre over states is unproblematic to notice.
Just after Independence, strong confidence in centralized planning led to the attentiveness
of the economic and political power in the centre. An ground-breaking move towards
allocation and budge to lodge greater say of private players and the business in the
planning process has given way more room for states and improved their maneuverability.
States now have more autonomy to pick up up resources for their socio-economic
development from the market-domestic as well as global. This has redefined the nature of
political be in command of the centre over the states. These reforms have re-defined
centre-state relations.

Value Addition – surf and read

Understanding Economic Reforms in India
Ahluwalia, M. S.. (2002). Economic Reforms in India since 1991: Has Gradualism Worked?.
The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 16(3), 67–88. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3216951

The multifaceted and culturally varied democracy such as India tried to manage its diversity
through federal institutional planning. But the demands of groups in the Indian society for
greater power, income and independence have been growing. Some of those demands have
been successfully put up by politicians, parties and governments through imaginative
'management' of the centre-state relations. 3 The centre-state relations have be tending
powerfully to stay put convenient because-first powerful group demands remain mainly a
product of intra-state conflict and seldom take the form of states difficulty which intrude
mainly on the centre and which if frustrated-might fashioned secessionist sentiments. In
some cases, belongings have gone wonderfully wrong and violent separatist movements
have built-up with insinuation for the democratic procedure determining the centre-state
relations.
Secessionism necessitates a sort of state-wide synchronization. The social and cultural
complicatedness and heterogeneity within most states are so alarming that they hold back
any development of such agreement.

Value Addition – Did you know

Categories of Secession
There are several ways in which a new political unit i.g. a city, county or state, can secede
from the larger or original state. These are as follows:
• Secession from a unitary state i.e. a state governed as a single large unit with few
powers reserved to sub-units.
• contrasted with Secession from a federation or confederation i.e. political entities

3
T.V.Satyamurthy,”Impact of Centre-State Relation on Indian Politics :An Interpretative Reckoning 1947-
1987’, in ParthaChaterjee (ed) ,State and Politics in India (New Delhi) Oxford University Press,1997),p232-36

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

with substantial reserved powers which have agreed to join together

• Colonial secession :
• this is generally known as “wars of independence" from a mother country or
imperial state
• National Secession meaning seceding completely from the national state; versus
local (seceding from the entity of the national state into another entity of the same
state)
• Central or commune secession where the seceding entity is completely bounded by
the original state, versus peripheral secession where the seceding along a border of
the original state.
• Secession by neighbouring units versus secession by non-contiguous units
• Separation or partition (although an entity secedes, the rest of the state retains its
structure) versus dissolution (all political entities dissolve their ties and create
several new states)

Fixation of the Indian citizens from one to another of the many identities (such as caste,
religion, regional, linguistic, communal or sectarian) which they have obtainable to them
transfer with great changeability. This tendency diminishes the severity and long life of most
conflicts within most states and stop nervousness and divergence from building up along a
single fault line in society.
The ability of the political institutions both formal and informal
to take action and provide lodging efficiently various demands (reflective of states' politics
of bargaining) remain continuous despite suffering decomposes in recent years. It stops
boom of conflicts into any major crisis.

EXIGENCIES OF INDIA
During the first 20 years or so after Independence in 1947, the society in
most of India was sufficiently self-governing and created few grave troubles for political
institutions-formal or informal. The Congress party's cluster of regional political 'machines'
infatuated the matter and the reach to administer most of the social tension that arose.
Since the late 1960s, things have turn out to be more tricky on both the socio-
cultural and political fronts. Interest groups have crystallized identities along language,
culture and religion. With the ever-increasing responsiveness of their political nervousness,
these groups have pushed harder for resources, power and respect. The political decompose
has badly exaggerated most formal and informal political institutions mainly due to the
efforts by politicians to be dressed in down the matter and self-sufficiency of institutions in
the interest of private rule, generating crisis in 'management' techniques and spreading the
seeds of aggravation among organized interests.
The result has been the production of far more divergence of a unconstructive sort. India
has seen escalation of ethnic agitation into violence, armed struggle rid demands for
division. This has been come about with individuality issues. Secessionist demands in states
such as Punjab, Mizoram, Jammu and Kashmir and Manipur can be particularly unspoken in
terms of racial/spiritual identity.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Recently, Punjab and Mizoram are post-conflict societies but until the late 1980s these two
states were wracked by wonderful violence and anxiety for secession. The other two states-
Jammu and Kashmir, and Manipur-continue to be tom apart by the same phenomenon. It is
said that the preceding militants in Punjab and today's militants in the Kashmir valley are
jammed in a battle in the cause of a religion that differs from the most important religion in
India which is Hinduism. The Mizo civilization is Christian. Radical section of the Metei
community in Manipur more and more refuse Hinduism and choose for their customary
Sanamalireligion.
Looking at the aggressive prototype of politics in such areas leads one to
question the presentation of democratic and federal organization in this part of the country. 4
The conflicts have produced up when the ability of political institutions to hold the stress is
incapacitated by the misuse of public office for private gain. This leads to misgovernance.
These are the processes which injure such unpredictable results. The other important
grounds for such instances is contravention of democratic and federal principles and
dissociation of democratic value from federal philosophy. If democracy rests on the
normative values of contribution and answerability, federalism best dish up to realize them.
When the federal principle is defiled through breach on regional self-sufficiency by the
centre, the democratic philosophy of distribution and answerability are also dishonored. The
contraventions of the federal/democratic principles when collective with politicization of
ethnicity lead to difference, which become immovable.
But politics of violence and secessionism has injured in the form of displacement,
homelessness, and breaking of human rights and hammering of lives. The breakup of
demands simulated democratization of society. The disagreement cannot be act in response
merely by defensive distribution of capital and power. Principles of democracy and alliance,
would insist lean-to of rights, opening and possessions to a variety of groups and society as
well.
Value Addition – Surf and Know
Secession in India
Capoccia, G., Sáez, L., & de Rooij, E.. (2012). When State Responses Fail: Religion
and Secessionism in India 1952–2002. The Journal of Politics, 74(4), 1010–1022.
http://doi.org/10.1017/s0022381612000564

Demand for secession from Indian Union:

Some states want secession from India. It has manifested in J & K, Manipur, Nagaland,
Mizoram, Tripura and in fact in the whole of North East India. It has also appeared in the
Punjab.
Secession in Punjab:
During 1980-92 a small sectionof Sikhs demanded Khalisthan, a separate state for the
Sikhs. This led to communal flare up between the Hindus and Sikhs and many Hindus left
Punjab. After operation Blue Star by Mrs. Gandhi and her assassination by her Sikh
bodyguards took place communal conflict in Delhi. However, people realized the hand of the
terrorists and peace returned to Punjab.

4
E R Frankel, Z. Hasan,, R Bhargava and B. Arora (eds.), Transforming India: Social and Political Dynamics of
Democracy, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2000

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Demand for Dravidnad:

The DMK Government' in Tamilnadu raised the demand for secession from India in 1960s.
They wanted the creation of Dravidnad. The Government of India took a tough stand and
Nehru said, "Territorial integrity would not be allowed to be violated." However after that
the DMK party abandoned the demand for Dravidnad and demanded the creation of a Tamil
union within the framework of the Indian Constitution.They also demanded greater
autonomy.
Secessionism in Mizoram:
Demand for secession has been a feature of Mizoram politics. At first the Mizo Freedom
organization demanded secession of certain areas from India and their union with China.
The Mizo National Front (MNF) under the leadership of Laldeng afterwards made a demand
for a greater state of Mizoram in the 1960s. It followed the path of violence and terrorism.
Laldenga was arrested. In 1977 when the Janata Government came to power, it withdrew
all cases against Laldenga and decided to grant full statehood to Mizoram. Then Mizoram is
a state in the Indian union in 1987.
Secessionism in Nagaland :
The Nagas demanded an independent state of Nagaland. They refused to participate in
1952 general elections and threatened to take the matter to the United Nations. They
formed the Naga National Council (NNC) under the leadership of Phizo and resorted to
terrorism and insurgency. The Government of India decided in 1960 to grant statehood to
Nagas within the framework of the Indian Constitution. This decision came to fruition in
1963 when on 1st December when Nagaland was inaugurated as a full-fledged state of the
Indian Union. 5 After thatMeghalaya, Manipur, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh attained
statehood. The seven states in the North East are called seven sisters.
Secessionism in Jammu and Kashmir:
In Jammu and Kashmir various groups like Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and
several Islamic' fundamentalist groups havebeen demanding secession from the Indian
Union. Some desire Kashmir as an independent state while some desire its accession to
Pakistan. Islamic terrorist groups are responsible for terrorist activities in Jammu and
Kashmir. In 1996 elections were held in J & K and Dr. Farooq Abdulla came to power. He
took several steps for ending terrorism in J & K. AtalBehari Vajpayee's historic bus journey
to Lahore is a commendable step in establishing good neighbourly relations between India
and Pakistan. But it was followed by the Kargil war waged by Pakistan. India won the war.
Yet so far no permanent solution to the Kashmir problem has been found out. The Islamic
fanatics aided and abetted by Pakistan are carrying out subversive activities in J & K and
killing Hindus.

Value addition –Surf and Read

Issue of Kashmir
CHANDHOKE, N.. (2010). When Is Secession Justified? The Context of Kashmir. Economic
and Political Weekly, 45(46), 59–66. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/25764126

5
Paul R Brass,The Politics of India Since Independence, 2nd edition. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University
Press, 1990.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Demand for separate statehood within the Indian Union:

This is the second type of regionalism in India. After the States Reorganization Act, 1956,
demands for separate statehood in various parts of the country is continuing. The rise in the
number of states since 1956 to 2000 justify the statement. In 1960 Bombay was divided
into Maharashtra and Gujarat. In 1966 Punjab was divided into Punjab and Haryana with a
common capital inChandigarh. 6 In course of time Nagaland, Meghalaya, ArunachalPradesh,
Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura were created. Then came into existence Himachal Pradesh and
Goa. In 2000 three new states of or Uttaranchal, Chhatisqarh and Jharkhand were created
not on linguistic but on geographical basis.
Demand for full statehood:
Some of the Union Territories have been granted fullstatehood as demanded by them.
Among these we may mention Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Arunachal
Pradesh, Tripura, Mizoram and Goa. Now the Central Government is considering the grant of
full statehood to Delhi. The demands for full statehood reflect the existence of regionalism.
Demand for Autonomy:
In Tamil Nadu the DMK, in Punjab the Akali Dal, in Andhra Pradesh the Telugu Desam and in
West Bengal the Forward Block have been clamouring a larger power for the state. In June
2000 The J & K Assembly adopted a three tier autonomy proposal - Kashmir for theMuslims,
Jammu for the Hindus and Ladakh for the Buddhists. But it was not accepted by the
Government of India. During 1996-97 elections most of the regional political parties
demanded more and real state autonomy 7.
Demand for regional Autonomy within a state:
In some states of the Indian Union, some regions are pressing for their regional identities.
This arises from regional imbalances caused by inefficient planning. In J & K, Ladkh makes
such a demand. In West. Bengal the Gorkhaland Principle and the demands for Telengana,
Bodoland and KonKan states can be grouped under this category.
Accommodation
Accommodation is the hall mark of successful federal governance in determining the
relationship between the centre and the states. It is being comprehended the subject of
conflicting rights and interests of any successful system of governance. Accommodation in
reply to demanding identities is above all mandatory to tackle many of the worriness in
modern states, whether we refer to the suitable values as minority rights, promotion of
diversity, multiculturalism, or decentralization of power.
At present, the idea of accommodation has undergone a transformation that point to the
modification of theories of democracy and federalism in multinational polities as well as in
multi-level systems of power and secessionist development.
The politics of somewhere to live is not only behind the unity of the polity but also endorse
the plurality of the society. Politics of Accommodation is collected of three parameters:
• Federalism as a socio-cultural theory of pluralism,
• Federalism as a political standard linking a dispersal of power,

6
SudiptaKaviraj, (ed.). Politics in India. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2002[1997].
7AtulKohli
(ed.). The Success of India's Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

• and federalism as an directorial agreement based on distribution of power and

jurisdiction.
The politics of accommodation indicates four ideological principles: compound nationalism,
participatory democracy, secularism, and community justice. In short, the politics of
accommodation learns federalism that it must center not only on the rebuilding of centre-
state relations, regionalism and reorganization but also on subject of socio-cultural pluralism
and accommodation. The politics of accommodation in the Indian context leftovers an
efficient concept despite failing in some cases to stay its guarantee of providing a
democratic institutional mechanism for its miscellaneous society . The politics of
accommodation remains the best hope for leading a territorially assorted and pluralistic
society like India. Its aptitude to build the centre physically powerful as well as maintain
itself in view of the mounting demands for regional and collection autonomy gives it a
unique flexibility. The politics of accommodation anxiety that the only obligation in the
present time is to make sure sharing of resources and chances with different ethnic and
cultural groups and communities as well to reunite democratic polity with growing
democratization of society. Arendt Lijphart is a political scientist talked about politics of
accommodation in segmented societies like India in order to sustain democracy through
equal power sharing. Lijphart attempted to develop his concept “The Politics of
Accommodation” for the Dutch political system.
Arend Lijphart’s The Politics of Accommodation and “The Puzzle of Indian Democracy
“talked about the hope for state unity and purposeful democracy in the nonattendance of
integrative prerequisites. Lijphart attempts to demonstrate that even in contexts where
there is practically no structurally endogenous basis for national unity. He said that states
can not only continue to exist but may even prosper while sustaining a reasonable, non-
threatening political atmosphere. In the lines of accommodation, Lijphart points to the
instance of the Netherlands and its fourfold partition into Liberal, Socialist, Calvinist, and
Catholic political blocs. Despite the evident lack of a common strapping national identity and
the practical absence of salient crosscutting social, political, or economic cleavages, Holland
has stayed put one of Europe’s strongest and most constant democracies. This, he
disagreed, is in large part due to the established “politics of accommodation”. Through this
process elites in each of blocs has arranged to follow particular rules of political
communication. He said that political system is fallout oriented, dissimilar ideological
commitments are put up with, critical political result are made by elite negotiation, no bloc
take delivery of political or economic fondness, culturally contentious issues are
depoliticized, and confidentiality within elite good deal and the superseding right of the
government to govern is respected. Oligarchic control of political institutions, general
respect to authority by the public, and the structural marginalization of fragment parties
thus differentiate this consociational system. Lijphart supports that the politics of
accommodation is an genuine and perhaps even practicable option to models of pluralistic
democracy based on crosscutting cleavages where ethnic division are mainly exceptional.
Lijphart even confessed the fall down of consociationalism in the Netherlands itself following
socialist negative response of elite somewhere to stay schemes, political losses by religious
parties in national elections, and rising confrontation by the sectarian mass publics to high
esteem and political unresponsiveness. 8

8
ArendLijphart, The Politics of Accommodation: Pluralism and Democracy in the Netherland,University of
California Press, ,p-89, 1975

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

The stop working of consociationalism in Lebanon is even more obviously evocative of this
point with its following glide into civil war in 1975 and remorseless volatility and structural
weakness to the present day.

Indian Perspectives
In the setting of federal structure of India, Lijphart urbanized his debates of federalism in
terms of accommodation in plural societies. Its purpose is to bring state harmony and
purposeful democracy. The idea was urbanized for accommodation particularly in the
Indian context due to the get higher of the separatists’ movements in Punjab and Kashmir,
the mounting patterns of politics of violence and demand for sovereignty in the North-
East, especially in Naga-inhabited areas, and the attrition of cultural unity that is being
damaged by religious and caste identities, have uncovered the restrictions of the
structural approach. The need of the hour for accommodation in the present time is to
ensure distribution of resources and opportunities with different ethnic and cultural
groups and communities as well to bring together democratic polity with growing
democratization of society

Value Addition – understanding it better

Federalism versus Autonomy

• The major difference between federalism and autonomy is that the kind of power-
distribution. While federalism conglomerates self-rule by regions with a collective
rule at the centre. The regions take pleasure in their individual power along with
they split power with the centre. India, Canada, Bosnia are the best examples of
autonomous federal structures.
• While autonomy is a special preparation between the centre and one or two regions,
as for example Scotland in the United Kingdom and South Tyrol in Italy. This
understanding does not include institutions through which autonomous territories
share legislative power at the central government. Autonomy models do not
comprise Upper Houses.
• a federal system survived where there is a coating of state institutions between a
state’s centre and its localities. On the other hand, territorial independence hand to
to minority groups the power to put into effect direct control over settled upon
issues of special concern to them.
• Thus, territorial autonomy, rather than federalism, is accepted when the most
important goal is to speak to the local anxiety of territorially concentrated minorities.

The politics of accommodation was also a order to bring about the collaboration of
federalism in determining the centre–state relations because India had seen the trend of
the politics of secession, many identities such as castes, religion, regional, linguistic
communal and sectarian approach.
It is said that Secessionism necessitates a sort of state-wide harmony. The social and
cultural complexities and heterogeneity within most states are so frightening that they deter
any development of such solidarity. It needs the absolute lodging of all personality in order
to make the federal system more useful. The politics of accommodation includes that the

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

preoccupations of the Indian citizens from one to another of the

many uniqueness (such as caste, religion, regional, linguistic, communal or sectarian) which
they have available to them shift with great variability. This tendency decreases the
harshness and prolonged existence of most conflicts within most states and put off tension
and conflicts from building up along a single display place in society. It is also said that the
capability of the political institutions to react and lodge successfully various demands 1most
of India was adequately self-governing and created few grave problems for political
institutions-formal or informal. The Congress party's group of regional political 'machines'
crazed the matter and the reach to handle most of the social anxiety that arose.
It was very complicated to put up the diverse politics that the things have become more
thorny on both the socio-cultural and political facade. Interest groups have crystallized
identities along language, culture and religion. With the increasing awareness of their
political anxiety, these groups have pushed harder for resources, power and respect .On the
other hand, political decay has troubled most formal and informal political institutions
mainly due to the efforts by politicians to wear away the substance and autonomy of
institutions in the interest of personal rule, generating a crisis in 'management' techniques
and disseminating the beginning of frustration among organized interests. The consequence
has been the production of far more conflict of a destructive sort.
The politics of accommodation was understood the fact that India has seen escalation of
ethnic dissatisfaction into violence, armed struggle and demands for separation.
Secessionist demands in states such as Punjab, Mizoram, Jammu and Kashmir and Manipur
can be particularly unspoken in terms of ethnic and religious identity. Today, Punjab and
Mizoram are post-conflict societies but until the late 1980s these two states were wracked
by marvelous violence and anxiety for secession. 9 The other two states-Jammu and
Kashmir, and Manipur-continue to be tom apart by the same observable fact. It should be
noted that the erstwhile militants in Punjab and today's militants in the Kashmir valley are
trapped in a struggle in the cause of a religion that change from the dominant religion in
India which is Hinduism. The Mizo community is Christian. Radical sections of the Metei
community in Manipur more and more discard Hinduism and opt for their traditional
sanamali religion. 10 On the other hand politics of violence and secessionism has imposed
incalculable harm in the form of disruption ,homelessness, contravention of human rights,
and loss of lives. The segmentation of demands reflects democratization of society. The
challenge cannot be responded merely by territorial distribution of resources and power.
Politics of accommodation includes that principles of democracy and federal spirit would
require the increase of individual rights, and resources to diverse groups and neighborhood
as well.

Value Addition – Surf and Know

Understanding problems of Federalism in India
Louise Tillin. (2007). United in Diversity? Asymmetry in Indian Federalism. Publius, 37(1),
45–67. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/4624781

9
Jaime Lluch, Constitutionalism and the Politics of Accommodation in Multinational Democracies, Palgrave
Macmillan, p-1, 2014
10
———. “The Puzzle of Indian Democracy: A ConsociationalInterpretation.”American Political Science
Review 90, no. 2 (June 1996): 258-68

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Summary
Secession is the process through which a new state is shaped from a mother state through
refutation of political obligation to and sovereignty of the supposed state. Secession is, a
right that yields to justification only in certain and very specific situation, that of
institutionalized injustice.

Secession in India characteristically means state secession, which is the withdrawal of one
or more states from the Union of India. Threats or aspirations to break away from India or
arguments justifying secession have been a feature of the country's politics almost since its
birth in 1947. Secession has been a subject of discussion in India as some argue secession
as a constitutional right and others argue it as a from a ordinary right of revolution. Some
prominent separatist movements aim at secession from India in order to the configuration
of a new nation from one or more states or new state.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

GLOSSARY

Accession formal acceptance of a treaty, international convention, or other

agreement between states OR an increase by something added
Accommodation theactofaccommodating;stateorprocessofbeingaccommodated;adaptation
autonomy a self-governing country or region

Coalition politics A political alliance, also referred to as a political coalition, political bloc,
is an agreement for cooperation between different political parties on
common political agenda.
Composite people of different religions, completely assimilate, such that none
nationalism ofthem have a social culture distinct from the social culture of others,
nor is the social conduct of one people distinguished from the social
conduct of other people.
Devolution the transfer or delegation of power to a lower level, especially by central
government to local or regional administration

Federalism A system of government in which power is divided between a central

authority and constituent political units
Pluralism
Regionalism regionalism is the expression of a common sense of identity and purpose
combined with the creation and implementation of institutions that
express a particular identity and shape collective action within a
geographical region.
Social the application of sociological principles to specific social problems
engineering
sui generis Sui generis is a Latin phrase, meaning "of its own kind/genus" and hence
"unique in its characteristics".

LONG QUESTIONS

1. Why is federalism important for India?

2. Does it hold Significance in view of growing demands of secessionism? What
alternatives would you suggest?
3. What future, in your view, does federalism have-in a polity like India?
4. What is the difference between territorial autonomy and federalism?
5. Do federalism and autonomy lead to secession?

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

1. Which one of the following states has been a strong protagonist of the state autonomy?
(a) Kerala (b) West Bengal
(c) Punjab (d) all the above.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

2. How many Schedules are these in the Indian Donstitution

(a) seven (b) nine
(c) ten (d) twelve
3. The X Schedules of the constitution of India deals with
(a) the national flag
(b) the administration of union territories
(c) disqualification on grounds of defections
(d) privileges of minority comminutes.
5. For which one of the following states the constitutions makes provision for special grant
for raising the level of administration in its backward areas.
(a) Assam (b) J&K
(c) Nagaland (d) all the above states
6. The sum of special grants to be made to the various states is determined by:
(a) the Parliament
(b) the president
(c) the comptroller and auditor general
(d) the planning commission
7. The constitution of India divides the financial resources of the country:
(a) in favour of centre
(b) infavour of the states
(c) annually between the centre and the states
(d) none of above.
8. Which one of the following is not correct?
(a) during financial emergency the union government can direct the states to
observe such cannons of financial purporting and other safeguards as is deems
necessary.
(b) during financial emergency the salaries and allowances of the states civil
servants, including the High Court judges can be reduced
(c) during the financial emergency the states legislatures are not permitted to pass
the money bills
(d) during financial emergency the states are expected to reserve all the maney bill
passed by the state legislatures for the consideration of the President.
9. The Union government can setup interstate council to-
(a) settle disputes between various states or states and centre
(b) coordinate the Planning activities of the various states
(c) divide the revenues between the centre government and the states
(d) None of the above.

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

10. What is the impact of the Financial emergency an the relations between the centre and
the states-
(a) the President can reduce the salaries of all state servants except the judges of
high court.
(b) the President can reduce the salaries of states civil servants including these of
the judges of high court
(c) the state legislatures are deprived of the right of enact money bills
(d) None of the above.

Answer key
1. (d) 2. (d) 3. (c) 4. (c) 5. (a) 6. (b) 7. (a)
8. (c) 9. (a) 10. (b)

REFERENCES
Neera Chandoke, A State of One’s Own: Secessionism and Federalism in India, Working
Paper No-80,Crisis States Research Centre, London School of Economics,p.1.
BalveerArora, Negotiating Diffrences: Federal Coalitions and National Cohesion, in Frankel,et
.al.(ed) ,Transforming India, p,179.
BalrajPuri.The Evolution of Indian Federalism: Strengths and Weaknesses, in L.C.Jain (ed)
Decentralization and Local Governance: Essays for George Mathew (New Delhi) Orient
Longman),p,91
Jaime Lluch, Constitutionalism and the Politics of Accommodation in Multinational
Democracies, Palgrave Macmillan, 2014, p-1
Arend Lijphart, The Politics of Accommodation: Pluralism and Democracy in the Netherland,
University of California Press, 1975,p-89
T.V. Satyamurthy,” Impact of Centre-State Relation on Indian Politics :An Interpretive
Reckoning 1947-1987’, in Partha Chateterjee (ed) ,State and Politics in India (New Delhi)
Oxford University Press,1997),pp.232-36.
Austin, Granville. The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation. New Delhi: Oxford
University Press, 1966.
Brass, Paul R The Politics of India Since Independence, 2nd edition. Cambridge, UK:
Cambridge University Press, 1990.
Chatterjee, Partha (ed.), State and Politics in India. New Delhi: Oxford University Press,
2000:
Frankel, E R, Z. Hasan, R Bhargava and B. Arora (eds.), Transforming India: Social and
Political Dynamics of Democracy, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Hague, R. and M. Harrop, Comparative Government and Politics: An Introduction
(Hampshire, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2(01).

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 Federalism-Politics of secession, Autonomy and Accommodation

Jain, L. C. (ed.), Decentralisation and Local Governance: Essays for George Mathew. New
Delhi: Orient Longman, 2005.
Kaviraj, Sudipta (ed.). Politics in India. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2002[1997].
Kohli, Atul (ed.). The Success of India's Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2001.
The Politics of Accommodation. Pluralism and Democracy in the Netherlands,
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1968.
Lijphart, Arend. The Politics of Accommodation: Pluralism and Democracy in the
Netherlands. 2nd , rev. ed. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1975.
———. “The Puzzle of Indian Democracy: A Consociational Interpretation.”American Political
Science Review 90, no. 2 (June 1996): 258-68.
Lustick, Ian S. “Lijphart, Lakatos, and Consociationalism.” World Politics50, no. 1 (1997):
88-117.
"Institutionalized tension" though used in a wider context, has been borrowed here from
AIpheus T. Mansons's The Supreme Court Palladium of Freedom (Michigan, 1962), p. 8.
Manson has called the Government of the United States as "institutionalised tension"
because the different organs of the government attempt to compete to attain a dominant
political position.
Constitution of India, Article 250.
Ibid., Article 356.
Ibid., Article 256.
Ibid., Article 249.
India Today, March 31, 1990, p. 45.
Stales of West Bengal vs. Union of India, 1964, I.S.C.R., 405-06.
ShiromaniAkali Dal da AadeshPatar (Election Manifesto), 1967, Amritsar ShiromaniAkali Dal.
hiromaniAkali Dal da Nawan Policy Programme (New Policy Programme), passed by the
Dal's Working Committee on 16-17 October, 1973, at Anandpur, 5-6.

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