By Quaid Najmi

Mumbai, Jan 10 (IANS): The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Tuesday lauded and 'saluted' Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin for his principled stance vis-a-vis his state's Governor R.N. Ravi after what happened in the TN legislature on Monday.

The Governor, in his customary address in the Assembly, had omitted mention of the Dravidian model of governance and names of revered leaders like E.V. Ramasamy, known popularly as Thanthai Periyar, the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, B.R. Ambedkar, or former stalwarts and CMs of that state like K. Kamaraj, C.N. Annadurai, though he later named K. Karunanidhi.

The Governor had deviated from the speech cleared by the ruling alliance, which led to a ruckus in the Assembly, and he later walked out of the House before Stalin could complete reading out the resolution demanding to include only the government-approved and printed speech.

Stalin's act earned him the admiration and applause of senior NCP leaders in Maharashtra for his stand on the developments in Tamil Nadu.

State NCP President Jayant R. Patil said that India is a federal system of democracy where the states enjoy the same status as the Centre.

"However, attempts are being made to crush the Constitutional rights of the state by the Governors appointed by the Centre all over India. We fully support the strong stand taken by CM Stalin," said Patil.

Senior NCP leader Jitendra Awhad congratulated Stalin for his "firm stand of raising objection to the Governor's omissions on the spot, and for upholding the highest Indian traditions of not insulting the country's great personalities and icons".

"After the protests, the TN Governor walked out of the House, but it was heartening to see that CM Stalin did not even once attempt to call him back. He showed that any slight to icons like Thanthai Periyar or Ambedkar will not be tolerated. I salute CM Stalin for this," said Awhad.

In another strong reaction, NCP's national spokesperson Clyde Crasto said that the post of Governor is Constitutional, they are the guardians of the state and it's their duty to remain neutral.

"Therefore, after appointment as Governor, the incumbent must bear in mind that he doesn't belong to any party or try to tow the party line. TN Governor Ravi's behaviour in the Assembly does not behove well for his stature and the constitutional position that he represents," said Crasto.

Patil pointed out that a Governor's address is like a 'policy' document of the respective state government.

"The Governor must read out the speech approved by the state Cabinet. This practice has been going on since the Constitution came into existence. We support the strong stand taken by CM Stalin," Patil said.

It may be recalled that the TN Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution seeking to relax Rule 17, which demanded to include only the speech printed and approved by the government.

Members of the ruling DMK and its allies like Congress, VCK, MDMK and CPI-M had raised slogans against the Governor during his address, and he was not present when the national anthem was played.