Cauvery water dispute won't be referred back to Tribunal assures SC

The Supreme Court has assured that it would not refer back the Cauvery dispute to the CWDT Nariman argued that distribution of water based on 1892 and 1924 agreement is not justified Tamil Nadu counsel said State’s argument is wrong and distribution is not based on old agreements

The Supreme Court on Wednesday assured that it would not refer the Cauvery water dispute back to the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) but it would resolve it. The bench headed by justice Deepak Mishra, justice Amitava Roy and justice A M Khanwilkar heard the argument of counsel for the State Fali  Nariman, who questioned the distribution of water by the Tribunal on the basis of the agreement between the Mysore Kingdom and Madras Presidency in 1892 and 1924.

The bench asked that since Karnataka is stating that the water distribution based on the old agreement is injustice towards the State, it should also tell the court how to set right the wrong. Also, justice Mishra asked why Karnataka had not sought cancellation of the agreement prior to 1974 and had it not bound by the agreement. Responding to that, Nariman said Karnataka was continuously opposing the agreement. The disputes between states intensified after the construction of four dams in the Cauvery basin in the State. The bench then assured that it would resolve the dispute and that there is no question of referring it back to the Tribunal.

Consel for Tamil Nadu, senior advocate Shekhar Naphade argued that Karnataka has been arguing that the water distribution is based on 1892 and 1924 agreement but it is not correct.