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Tamil Nadu against expert panel on Mullaperiyar dam

J. Venkatesan

Prefers a ruling from Supreme Court
Case posted for hearing on March 31

New Delhi: The Tamil Nadu Government on Thursday informed the Supreme Court that it was not agreeable to the suggestion for constitution of an expert committee to examine the report of the IIT-Delhi on the safety of the Mullaperiyar dam relied on by the Kerala government to assert that the water level in the dam could not be raised beyond 136 ft.

A three-judge Bench of Justice Arijit Pasayat, Justice D.K. Jain and Justice Mukundakam Sharma, hearing the dam case on Wednesday, wanted to know the opinion of the two States for referring the IIT report for assessment by an independent agency.

On Thursday, senior counsel K. Parasaran, appearing for Tamil Nadu, told the Bench, “I have negative response. We [State] are not agreeable to the suggestion. We have materials to demonstrate that the dam is safe. We will take a ruling from this court instead of the matter going before another committee.”

Senior counsel Harish Salve, appearing for Kerala, said the court itself could appoint a committee. He, however, said, “I can understand the predicament of Tamil Nadu. We will proceed with the case.” Thereafter, the Bench posted the case for further hearing on March 31.

On Wednesday, Mr. Salve, referring to the IIT report, said that maintaining the water level even at 136 ft. would pose danger to the dam.

The court is hearing a suit filed by Tamil Nadu questioning the law enacted by Kerala to prevent implementation of a 2006 apex court judgment allowing the level in the Mullaperiyar dam to be raised beyond 136 ft. up to a level of 142 ft. It was the contention of Tamil Nadu that the impugned law had no application to a dam and the reservoir belonging to another State, the rights of which were governed by a subsisting agreement between the two States. By enacting the law, Kerala had not only encroached upon the province of the judiciary but also disobeyed the apex court judgment.

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