New Delhi: Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah has written to Tamil Nadu chief minister M. K. Stalin expressing “strong support” for initiating a national conversation on Union–State relations, stressing the importance of cooperative federalism within India’s constitutional framework. He underlined that India’s strength lies in “cooperative federalism, constitutional trust, and respect for diversity”.The letter was sent in response to Stalin’s February-20 letter in which he shared part one of the report prepared by the high-level committee on Union–State relations. Stalin had earlier presented the report of the Justice Kurian Joseph High-Level committee on Union-State Relations in the Tamil Nadu assembly.In his response, Siddaramaiah said the discussion on federal relations should involve all states, regardless of political affiliations. “Federal renewal cannot be a solitary endeavour of one or two states; it must emerge as a collective articulation,” he wrote, adding that the aim is “not to weaken the Union but to right-size it, to ensure that national energy is concentrated on genuinely national priorities, while States are trusted with spheres constitutionally entrusted to them.”Sharing the letter on the social media platform X, Siddaramaiah said federalism is embedded in the Constitution’s basic structure. “The federal structure of the states is a basic feature of our Constitution, as acknowledged by the Honourable Supreme Court in the S. R. Bommai and Union of India case. The stability of our constitutional democracy depends on preserving this balance. The center engaging in activities beyond its authority has led to excessive interference and weakened the administrative system. Consequently, states have become experimental grounds for the central government’s new policies and programmes.”ತಮಿಳುನಾಡಿನ ಮುಖ್ಯಮಂತ್ರಿ ಸ್ಟಾಲಿನ್ ಅವರು ಬರೆದಿರುವ ಪತ್ರಕ್ಕೆ ನನ್ನ ಪ್ರತಿಕ್ರಿಯೆಯ ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಾರಾಂಶಭಾಗ -1ಆತ್ಮೀಯ ಸ್ಟಾಲಿನ್ ಅವರೇ,ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಪರವಾಗಿ ಶುಭಾಶಯಗಳು.ನಿಮ್ಮ ಪತ್ರ ಮತ್ತು ಅದರೊಂದಿಗೆ ಕಳುಹಿಸಿರುವ ತಮಿಳುನಾಡು ಸರ್ಕಾರ ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಮತ್ತು ರಾಜ್ಯಗಳ ಸಂಬಂಧದ ಅಧ್ಯಯನಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ರಚಿಸಿರುವ ಉನ್ನತ ಮಟ್ಟದ ಸಮಿತಿಯ ವರದಿಯ… pic.twitter.com/b1eitU65uE— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) March 3, 2026He reiterated that greater autonomy and financial capacity for states are essential for effective governance. “India’s strength lies in cooperative federalism, constitutional trust, and respect for diversity,” he said.In the letter, Siddaramaiah raised concerns about what he described as the “phenomenon of incremental centralisation”, arguing that the federal balance has been altered through expansive interpretations of the Concurrent List, conditional fiscal transfers, centrally designed schemes that leave states with limited flexibility, and procedural delays in obtaining the governor’s assent. According to him, arrangements originally meant to promote cooperative federalism have increasingly resembled “coercive federalism”.“A mature federation thrives on negotiated accommodation rather than unilateral assertion. 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 wrote.Placing the issue in historical context, he referred to the debates during the framing of the constitution. “As you have rightly observed, our constitution was framed under exceptional historical compulsions. The Constituent Assembly, animated by the anxieties of Partition and integration, consciously crafted a Union with unitary features. Yet, as B. R. Ambedkar reminded the assembly, India would be a “Union of States,” not a unitary state in disguise. Federalism was not an act of administrative convenience but a structural guarantee against concentration of power.”ತಮಿಳುನಾಡಿನ ಮುಖ್ಯಮಂತ್ರಿ ಸ್ಟಾಲಿನ್ ಅವರು ಬರೆದಿರುವ ಪತ್ರಕ್ಕೆ ನನ್ನ ಪ್ರತಿಕ್ರಿಯೆಯ ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಾರಾಂಶಭಾಗ -2ಕರ್ನಾಟಕವು ತಮಿಳುನಾಡಿನಂತೆಯೇ ಭಾಷಾ ನೀತಿ, ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ, ಸಾರ್ವಜನಿಕ ಆರೋಗ್ಯ, ಹಣಕಾಸು ಹಂಚಿಕೆ, ಶಾಸಕಾಂಗದ ಸ್ವಾಯತ್ತತೆ ಮುಂತಾದ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ರಾಜ್ಯಗಳ ಸಾಂವಿಧಾನಿಕ ಪಾತ್ರವನ್ನು ದೃಢವಾಗಿ ಪ್ರತಿಪಾದಿಸುತ್ತಾ ಬಂದಿವೆ. ಇವು… pic.twitter.com/UliABtYGNt— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) March 3, 2026“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,” Siddaramaiah concluded.