India, Jan. 20 -- The strain in relations between the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government continues to manifest in newer ways. Two recent developments underline how it pops up frequently, in different forms and contexts, and why it eludes closure.

On Tuesday, Tamil Nadu governor RN Ravi walked out of the first assembly session of the year without delivering the customary address. The Lok Bhavan has charged the government with making "numerous unsubstantiated claims and misleading statements" in the governor's address and said the national anthem has been insulted. The governor's address is conventionally a statement of claims and intent prepared by the government, which the governor reads out. It is unusual for a governor's office to re...