In its manifesto released on March 19, the Naam Tamizhar Katchi (NTK) promises to offer thanalamatra, anbaana sarvadhigara aatchimurai (a selfless, lovable dictatorship in governance) ahead of the Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu. The combination is unheard of as are many other promises.
In the 2024 Parliamentary elections in the state, the NTK secured an 8.22 per cent vote share, roughly translating to 35 lakh votes. It secured third place in five constituencies -- Erode, Kallakurichi, Kanniyakumari, Nagapattinam and Tiruchirappalli -- and stood fourth in 35 constituencies.
In the 2021 TN Assembly elections, it had secured 6.58 per cent of the vote.
Notably, it had contested both elections alone just like it will in the upcoming polls.
The NTK has a formidable vote base among first-time voters, youngsters, farmers, those who seek an alternative to Dravidian ideology and are interested in Tamil nationalism. But the manifesto is pivotal for attracting a wider following.
First, let's take a look at the less controversial promises.
The manifesto states that the NTK's first duty, if voted to power, will be to ban the usage of chemical fertilisers in agriculture and revive the practices of organic farming. It also adds that it will promote food crop cultivation over cash crop cultivation to ensure food security.
Interestingly, in order to protect the environment, the party aims at the creation of a special board to eradicate plastic, a one-of-a-kind initiative.
The party, well known for its advocacy on women's empowerment, has promised to waive all loans received by women Self Help Groups in the state, a masterstroke to ease the burden of women.
Women's welfare has always been the NTK's top priority.
Since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the NTK has made sure that 50 per cent of its candidates are women. Interestingly, the women candidates secured more votes than their male counterparts in that election.
Subsequently, in the 2021 Assembly elections, 2024 Lok Sabha elections and even in the upcoming Assembly elections, the party has fielded an equal number of men and women candidates.
The party also promises the creation of 'Anbuthalir', a centre to ensure the welfare of special kids and abandoned children, and kids suffering under extreme poverty. It also promises special schools in all districts to cater to the needs of children with learning disabilities.
It also proposes the creation of 'Anbucholai', a centre to take care of abandoned elderly people.
But all is not well in the manifesto. Many irrelevant, impractical and superfluous promises overshadow the party's tall ambitions.
The party calls for the introduction of Inner Line Permits in Tamil Nadu. It claims that due to the uncontrolled entry of people from other states into Tamil Nadu, Tamils are feeling powerless, leading to law and order issues in the state.
Inner Line Permits exist in states with small populations in the northeast to protect the indigenous cultures, traditions, and demographic balance of the region from excessive external influence. But it's difficult to understand why Tamil Nadu warrants inclusion in this category.
The NTK also states in the manifesto that indirect elections for the President go against democratic principles and promises that it will request the Centre to make a suitable amendment to ensure direct elections.
Notably, in a discussion during the making of the Constitution, as highlighted by Electing the First Citizen: An Illustrated Chronicle of India’s Presidential Elections, K Hanumanthaiah, who represented the princely state of Mysore in the Constituent Assembly, opposed this stating, "Whoever thus elected will never be able to forget his party affiliations".
Notably, even Jawaharlal Nehru, then head of the Union Constitution Committee in the Constituent Assembly, rejected the idea of a direct Presidential election.
He had highlighted, "If we had an election by adult franchise and yet did not give him any real powers, it might become slightly anomalous."
Article 74 explicitly states that the President must act on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. Significantly, the clemency powers (Article 72), often touted as a vital power of the President, do not fall beyond judicial review.
With a limited scope for the role of President as mandated in the many provisions of the Constitution and notable judgements including UNR Rao vs Indira Gandhi (1971), Maru Ram vs Union of India (1981), S.R. Bommai vs Union of India (1994) reinforcing that Presidents do not enjoy arbitrary powers, the NTK's push for a President to be directly elected is illogical.
The manifesto also states that the party will 'fight' and 'secure' reserved constituencies for women in state Assembly elections and Lok Sabha elections to enhance their participation in the legislative process.
However, the Women's Reservation Act 2023, also the Constitution's 106th Amendment Act, which aims to reserve 33 per cent (one-third) of seats for women in the Lok Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies, and the Delhi Assembly, has already been unanimously passed by both Houses during a special session in September 2023.
Notably, President Murmu had also given her assent, later in the same month.
The reservation will come into effect following the completion of coming Census and delimitation exercise (likely to take place in 2029). Why fight when the remedy is already on the way?
The NTK does not spare cooperative federalism, either. The manifesto highlights that the Centre's right to legislate on 144 subjects (originally), (97 subjects in the Union list and 47 subjects in the concurrent list) as per the Seventh Schedule, gives rise to ‘power centralisation’.
The party vouches that it will ensure efforts to bring in a constitutional amendment that paves the way for states to legislate on ‘all’ subjects.
Meanwhile, the Constitution's rationale behind splitting the subjects is to ensure shared expertise, uniformity in matters of national importance, and smooth resolution in case of conflicting laws across the country.
'A stronger Centre' was a well-informed decision. The Constitution makers were aware of the need that existed for the country then, amid growing secessionist tendencies and a traumatic partition.
However, they ensured, via Article 368, that the Seventh Schedule can be modified to accommodate changing needs in governance, facilitating the transfer of subjects between the Union, State, and Concurrent lists, if needed.
Notably, the Constitution already promotes state autonomy by ensuring that if an amendment affects the federal structure, like the distribution of powers between the Centre and states, then ratification by at least half of the state legislatures is mandatory.
In view of existing checks and balances in the Constitution and timely commissions that were formed to review Centre-state relations (Sarkaria Commission (1983), Administrative Reforms Commissions (1966,2005) and Punchhi Commission (2007), the NTK's blanket quest to enable states to legislate 'all' subjects remains ambiguous.
If voted to power, the NTK says that it would make voting mandatory. The manifesto highlights that citizens would be eligible to avail government benefits 'only' if they had voted in the elections. On top of it all, it states that the proof that one had voted in the election carries more importance than mere possession of a voter ID under the NTK rule.
Over ten years ago, the Law Commission in its 255th report on electoral reforms had strongly emphasised that it ‘does not recommend' the introduction of compulsory voting as it believes it to be 'highly undesirable' for a variety of reasons, such as being undemocratic, illegitimate, expensive, etc., in the Indian context.
Also, Section 79(d) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, explicitly includes the ‘right to refrain from voting’ as a part of an individual's electoral rights. At all costs, compulsory voting stands in contradiction to the liberal democratic values that the Constitution is all about.
The NTK isn't just calling for a few scattershot amendments; it strikes at the heart of Constitution-making itself. It claims the Constitution was framed without considering the opinions of 30 crore people, including those from the backward and Scheduled Castes.
But the party must be reminded that the Indian Constitution is one of the most celebrated documents in the world, for it has been curated by the best hands from diverse socio-political backgrounds.
Led by BR Ambedkar, a staunch advocate for Dalit rights, as chairman, and having members from various religious and linguistic groups along with fifteen extraordinary women, including Sarojini Naidu, Hansa Mehta and Ammu Swaminathan, the drafting committee worked for 141 days to prepare the Draft Constitution and devoted 165 days in deliberations on the Draft Constitution.
Party chief Seeman kick-started his party campaign on March 23. For sure, interesting days lie ahead as we watch how he intends to convince the people with a manifesto largely filled with outlandish promises.