Talks fail; Supreme Court to hear Kerala’s suit against Centre

The Supreme Court decided to go ahead with hearing a suit filed by the State of Kerala against the Centre for “arbitrarily” interfering in its financial affairs, after talks between the two failed to resolve their differences.

The Supreme Court on Monday decided to go ahead with hearing a suit filed by the State of Kerala against the Centre for “arbitrarily” interfering in its financial affairs, after talks between the two failed to resolve their differences.

Appearing before a Bench headed by Justice Surya Kant, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, for Kerala, informed that the Centre wanted it to withdraw the suit in return for giving ₹11,000 crore.

“We are already entitled to this amount. Our immediate need is for about ₹24,000 crore,” Mr. Sibal argued.

However, Additional Solicitor General N. Venkataraman, for the Union government, said it was willing to cross all parameters and guidelines in the “spirit of cooperative federalism” to help Kerala. If so, the law officer said, the Centre’s helping hand for Kerala would go up to ₹48,049 crore.

“But you [Kerala] cannot talk and also litigate,” he submitted.

Mr. Sibal said Kerala was one of the leading States in human development indices. Its expenditure was mainly in sectors of health and education.

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