Editor's Pick: Disquiet over cooperation

The decision of the BJP government at the Centre to open a Ministry for Cooperation has set alarm bells ringing among Opposition parties, with many stating that it is an affront to federalism. The formation of the Ministry was announced on July 5 and the portfolio has been allocated to Home Minister Amit Shah. Cooperative societies are prevalent in many sectors in India, including agriculture and finance. Credit cooperative societies at the village, district, and State levels have huge patronage, both in rural and urban centres. However, their presence and influence vary from State to State, with Kerala, Maharashtra, and a few others having very strong cooperative movements. Their financial role and democratic setup involving elections at the grassroots, also make them of political interest. Parties such as the CPI (M) and the Congress in Kerala and NCP and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra are large stakeholders in cooperative societies, drawing some of their financial clout and party personnel from them. Hence, the BJP trying to exert Central control over these societies have rattled these parties. The Central government's argument is that it is attempting to streamline the cooperative sector and increase the ease of doing business for the societies. BJP leaders separately told The Hindu that the move was also meant to uproot some established powers. However, with cooperation coming under the State list in the Constitution and the societies being governed in many States by local legislation, the legalities of the Ministry is yet to be clear. BJP MP Dhananjay Mahadik told The Hindu that the Ministry will require an Act of Parliament to be notified. With CPI and Congress leaders saying that they will oppose the move, the coming Monsoon Session of Parliament is set to see heated debates over the Ministry. These political and legal questions are what make the story important. The Hindu's Editorials Undead section: On Section 66A of the IT Act Murder of a President: On assassination of Jovenel Moise Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor's Pick and more. Click here Try out The Hindu's daily news quiz Name the brother of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who sworn in as Sri Lanka’s Minister of Finance on Thursday, becoming the fourth Rajapaksa brother to enter the Cabinet. 1. Namal Rajapaksa 2. Basil Rajapaksa 3. Chamal Rajapaksa 4. Shasheendra Rajapaksa To find out the answer and play the full quiz, click here [logo] Editor's Pick 10 JULY 2021 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( Disquiet over cooperation [Disquiet over cooperation] The decision of the BJP government at the Centre to open a Ministry for Cooperation has [set alarm bells ringing among Opposition parties]( with many stating that it is an affront to federalism. [The formation of the Ministry]( was announced on July 5 and the portfolio has been allocated to Home Minister Amit Shah. Cooperative societies are prevalent in many sectors in India, including agriculture and finance. Credit cooperative societies at the village, district, and State levels have huge patronage, both in rural and urban centres. However, their presence and influence vary from State to State, with Kerala, Maharashtra, and a few others having very strong cooperative movements. Their financial role and democratic setup involving elections at the grassroots, also make them of political interest. Parties such as the CPI (M) and the Congress in Kerala and NCP and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra are large stakeholders in cooperative societies, drawing some of their financial clout and party personnel from them. Hence, the BJP trying to exert Central control over these societies have rattled these parties. The Central government's argument is that it is attempting to streamline the cooperative sector and increase the ease of doing business for the societies. BJP leaders separately told The Hindu that the move was also meant to uproot some established powers. However, with cooperation coming under the State list in the Constitution and the societies being governed in many States by local legislation, the legalities of the Ministry is yet to be clear. BJP MP Dhananjay Mahadik told The Hindu that the Ministry will require an Act of Parliament to be notified. With CPI and Congress leaders saying that they will oppose the move, [the coming Monsoon Session of Parliament]( is set to see heated debates over the Ministry. These political and legal questions are what make the story important. The Hindu's Editorials [Arrow][Undead section: On Section 66A of the IT Act]( [Arrow][Murder of a President: On assassination of Jovenel Moise]( [underlineimg] Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor's Pick and more. [Click here]( [underlineimg] Try out The Hindu's daily news quiz Name the brother of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who sworn in as Sri Lanka’s Minister of Finance on Thursday, becoming the fourth Rajapaksa brother to enter the Cabinet. 1. Namal Rajapaksa 2. Basil Rajapaksa 3. Chamal Rajapaksa 4. Shasheendra Rajapaksa To find out the answer and play the full quiz, [click here]( Today's Best Reads [[In defence of India’s noisy democracy] In defence of India’s noisy democracy]( [[Terrain, facilities in J&K to reflect in delimitation] Terrain, facilities in J&K to reflect in delimitation]( [[Deception is a legitimate strategy of Chinese diplomacy, says Vijay Gokhale] Deception is a legitimate strategy of Chinese diplomacy, says Vijay Gokhale]( [[News Analysis | A perception shift in relations between Sri Lanka and China?] News Analysis | A perception shift in relations between Sri Lanka and China?]( Copyright @ 2021, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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