News India Live, Digital Desk: Punjab government: There is a continuous dispute between Punjab and Haryana over water sharing. The Punjab government has now filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday demanding a review or amendment of its previous order of May 6, including the order related to the decision of Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan to release 4,500 cusecs of water to Haryana on 2 May.
The High Court had directed Punjab to follow the decision of the meeting held on May 2, led by the Union Home Secretary on 6 May. On May 2, a high -level meeting was held under the leadership of the Home Secretary, in which it was advisable to implement the decision of the Bhakra Beas Management Board to release 4,500 cusecs of water from Bhakra Dam in the next 8 days to fulfill the state’s water needs.
‘Home Secretary not the authority to decide’
In its petition, Punjab objected to this time that the Union Home Secretary is not suitable for taking decisions about releasing water. The petition also said, “Apart from this, Haryana had said during the proceedings before this court that the meeting convened by the Union Home Secretary on May 2 was related to the law and order situation. It also shows that no decision could be taken on the issue of water allocation in the meeting, especially when it was legally referred to the Electricity Ministry.”
According to the petition, the assumption was given before the court that this meeting was held on the issue of issuing 4,500 cusecs of water to Haryana, while the reality is that no special agenda was fixed for the meeting.
BBMB chairman gave wrong information
The Punjab government says that it is a fact that the Home Secretary BBMB Rules does not have a competent authority to take any decision under Rule 7, so Punjab is not legally bound to comply with the said decision.
Meanwhile, the Punjab government also stated on Monday that it has initiated legal action against BBMB chairman Manoj Tripathi for “deliberately presenting wrong facts” before the High Court. The official spokesperson of the government said that the Punjab government has strongly denied the claims of illegal custody of BBMB chairman.
The spokesperson in an official statement claimed, “During the court proceedings on 8 May, Manoj Tripathi had admitted that he was surrounded by only local citizens. The Punjab Police helped him get out safely. However, in his affidavit on May 9, he allegedly alleged that he was kept in illegal custody, while his claim was directly opposite to his earlier feud.”
Punjab has already refused
The spokesperson said, “In such a situation, the Punjab government has implemented Section 379 of the Indian Civil Protection Code (BNSS) 2023 and has also requested the High Court to initiate an investigation into an offense under Section 215 of BNSS, which is related to intentionally presenting wrong affidavits.”
There has been a struggle between Punjab and Haryana over water sharing. The Aam Aadmi Party government of Punjab has refused to share water from Bhakra Dam, saying that the neighboring state Haryana has already used its share of water. Punjab claims that Haryana has already finished its allotted part, 4,000 cusecs of water is already being released on humanitarian basis.
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