Centre opposes PIL to replace term 'Centre' with 'Union'

New Delhi: The Centre on Friday opposed a plea before the Delhi High Court seeking to adopt the terms 'Union', 'Union government', or 'Union of India' instead of 'Central government' or 'Centre' in all official orders, notifications, and correspondences.

The plea, filed by an 84-year-old man named Atmaram Saraogi, argues that the Constitution originally intended the use of the term 'Union government' and that its usage would foster a more unified relationship between the Union and the states, counteracting the perception of centralisation of power.

Representing the Centre, its counsel stated that the plea amounts to unnecessary litigation and should be dismissed.

During the hearing, the high court said it could not see any public interest in the plea and opined that there is no prohibition on using the term ‘Central government’.

In response, senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing the petitioner, highlighted that the Constitution of India exclusively employs the term 'Union government' and never uses 'Central government'.

He said that the phrase 'Central government' is not legally recognised and that Article 1 of the Constitution refers to the 'Union' rather than 'Central'.

The petitioner's contention aims to challenge the definition of 'Central government' as outlined in Section 3(8)(b) of the General Clauses Act, 1897, arguing that it is inconsistent with the constitutional framework of India as a 'Union of States'.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula granted time to the Centre to respond to the petition and listed it for further hearing on December 5.

With inputs from agencies