'Absence Of Consent': Punjab Seeks Recall Of High Court Order On Bhakra Water Release To Haryana

The Punjab Government has filed an application before the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking the recall of the latter's 6 May order, which directed Punjab to comply with the Central Government’s decision to release Bhakra dam water to Haryana, LiveLaw reported.

The order had instructed Punjab to follow the decision made at a meeting on 2 May, chaired by the Union Home Secretary, which called for releasing an additional 4,500 cusecs of water to Haryana over eight days to meet emergent needs.

In its plea, the Punjab Government strongly contested the Home Secretary’s authority to issue directives concerning water allocation, stating that the Union Home Secretary is not the competent authority and lacks jurisdiction to decide on allocation of water under Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) Rules.

Punjab further argued that the 2 May meeting was convened to address law and order concerns, not water allocation. “This further shows that the meeting could not have decided the issue of water allocation especially when it stood statutorily referred to Ministry of Power,” the state contended.

The application also alleged that the BBMB had withheld a letter from Haryana requesting the matter be referred to the Central Government under Rule 7 of the BBMB Rules 1974.

Invoking Article 262 of the Constitution, Punjab insisted that any inter-state water dispute must be adjudicated under parliamentary law, specifically the Inter-State Water Disputes Act 1956.

“Any deviation to release water in the absence of such consent would constitute a water dispute and can only be decided by Constituting a Water Tribunal under 1956 Act and not otherwise,” the plea asserted.

Punjab has urged the High Court to review or modify its earlier direction, citing a lack of full disclosure of facts during the initial hearing.

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