‘Kerala now Keralam’: Union Cabinet greenlights Constitutional name change
New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Tuesday formally approved the Kerala government’s proposal to rename the state as Keralam, a decision that triggers the constitutional process to align the state’s official title with its linguistic and cultural roots.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the resolution following a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Notably, the session was the first to be held at Seva Teerth, the government’s newly inaugurated Prime Minister’s Office complex.
The move follows a unanimous resolution passed by the Kerala Legislative Assembly on June 24, 2024, which argued that "Keralam" is the authentic name in the Malayalam language. While the state has been referred to as "Kerala" in the First Schedule of the Constitution since the linguistic reorganisation of states on Nov. 1, 1956, the local population has long sought a formal correction.
The Legislative Roadmap
The approval sets in motion a specific constitutional procedure under Article 3, which governs the alteration of state names:
- Presidential Referral: Following the Cabinet’s nod, the President of India will refer the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, to the Kerala Legislative Assembly to obtain its formal views.
- State Review: The state legislature will review the bill within a specified timeframe.
- Parliamentary Introduction: Once the state's views are received, the central government will seek the President’s recommendation to introduce the bill in Parliament for final passage.
"Since the time of National Independence Struggle, there has been a strong demand for the formation of United Kerala for the people speaking Malayalam language," the state’s resolution noted, adding that "Kerala Piravi" (the state's birth) is celebrated on the first of November.
Inter-Ministerial Consensus
The proposal reached the Cabinet after the Ministry of Home Affairs, led by Amit Shah, coordinated with the Ministry of Law and Justice. Both the Department of Legal Affairs and the Legislative Department concurred with the change, providing the necessary legal clearance for the draft note.
The renaming is seen as a significant symbolic victory for Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s administration, which had to resubmit the proposal after the Home Ministry suggested technical revisions to an earlier 2023 draft. The decision also comes as the state prepares for assembly elections expected this spring.
With inputs from PTI