Supreme Court on Centre, State Funds Row: Let There Not Be Contest over Karnataka Drought Relief Funds

The petition filed by the Karnataka government alleges that the central government has not provided financial assistance in response to a drought affecting multiple districts. It claims that the failure to disburse funds has violated the fundamental rights of the people of the state.

Additionally, the state argues that the centre has not taken action on a report by an inter-ministerial team regarding the drought-related disaster for almost six months, leading to the aggravation of the situation due to the withholding of National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) benefits. During the court proceedings, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the state government, pointed out that the centre was required to act on the report within a month of its submission.

In response, the centre questioned the timing of the petition, particularly in light of the upcoming Lok Sabha election, and suggested that the state should have approached Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government before seeking intervention from the top court. The dispute between the centre and states over the distribution of funds and devolution of taxes has gained attention, especially with southern states such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala challenging the centre in this regard.

The petition from Karnataka followed shortly after Tamil Nadu sought an ex-parte order directing the centre to release Rs 2,000 crore as part of an interim relief package for flood-affected districts. These ongoing conflicts have attracted significant media coverage, particularly with the Lok Sabha election approaching.

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