The Cabinet on Saturday urged the Centre not to notify the Cauvery River Water Disputes Tribunal final award till the Supreme Court disposes civil petitions challenging the order.
The Cabinet meeting, presided by Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, has decided to urge the Union government not to notify the final order following the challenge of the Tribunal’s order in the Supreme Court by riparian States and also filing applications before the tribunal, seeking classificatory orders.
Two letters sent
Addressing presspersons on the Cabinet decisions, Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs S. Suresh Kumar said a copy of the Cabinet decision would be forwarded to the Centre.
He said Mr. Shettar had written two letters last month to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging that the tribunal verdict not be notified without consulting the State.
Bommai explains
Minister for Water Resources Basavaraj Bommai provided a detailed account in the Cabinet meeting about the Supreme Court’s directive to the Centre to consider notifying the tribunal order by January 31.
The Central Water Commission Secretary had asked the States’ Chief Secretary S.V. Ranganath about the State’s stand on notifying the final tribunal order at the recent Cauvery Monitoring Committee meeting held in Delhi, to which the latter had replied he could not say anything on it as the issue was not in the agenda and that he would have to discuss it with the government, Mr. Kumar said.
‘Not fair’
He said the meeting was informed about the Solicitor General’s view that it was not fair to notify the order since applications are pending before the Supreme Court and also classificatory applications before the tribunal as per the opinion tendered by the Union Law Ministry.
A few years ago, the Supreme Court directed the Centre not to notify the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal final award.
