A major political and legal showdown over fiscal federalism is brewing with Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled states preparing to move the Supreme Court of India against the newly passed Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation Amendment Act, sources have said.
Top Congress sources said Chief Ministers from Telangana Revanth Reddy, Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and their Kerala counterpart VD Satheesan are joining forces to file a joint petition in the Supreme Court regarding this bill.
The Congress alleges that the Central Government introduced the legislation without consulting state governments, viewing it as an attempt to strip states of their rights. The Congress aims to take the lead in this narrative, positioning itself as the primary defender of states’ rights against the Centre. The party’s strategy is to lead the legal fight while uniting other opposition-ruled states under its umbrella to challenge the law in the Supreme Court. Soren argued that the legislation restricts states’ fiscal and constitutional rights to tax mineral-bearing land.
Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan had said the amendments to the MMDR Act are against federal principles as they seek to take away the rights and ownership of the states over their lands, and therefore, it would be strongly opposed. The Centre, he said, was seeking to regulate major minerals such as coal, limestone, iron ore, copper and manganese, while states would continue to have powers over 49 minor minerals. When the mines bill was tabled in parliament, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren had written a letter to Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on August 13 asking him to oppose this bill.
Congress sources told NDTV that the party will hold a discussion with Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren to forge a broader coalition of mineral-rich states to challenge the Central law. Congress sources said the party had vehemently opposed the bill in Parliament. Replying to the debate in the Upper House, Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy had said the legislation does not seek to interfere with the autonomy or revenue rights of states, but aims to ensure uniform mineral rates across the country.
