CHANDIGARH: Amid the ongoing dispute between Punjab and Haryana over water from the Bhakra Canal, a petition was filed in the Punjab and Haryana high court. The plea urges the court to direct the Punjab govt to withdraw its police personnel stationed at the Bhakra Headworks, arguing that their presence is obstructing the free flow of water through the canal.
According to the petitioner, while flouting all constitutional duties, the Punjab govt illegally deployed a posse of cops at the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) headworks and Lohand Khud escape channel. As per the plea, the regulator gates at Bhakra headworks, from where the water flow has to be increased for Haryana and Lohand Khud escape channel, are now under the control of Punjab police. The petitioner also alleged that the police are using illegal force to block the flow of water in the canals, which is causing a severe water crisis for the people of the state of Haryana.
The matter reached the HC in the wake of a petition filed by Advocate Ravinder Singh Dhull. The petitioner urged the court to issue a clear directive prohibiting any unlawful measures that obstruct the water flow and to immediately release 8,500 cusecs of water into the Bhakra Canal.
The petition, which is yet to be cleared by the registry of the high court, has impleaded the states of Punjab, Haryana, the central govt, and the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) as respondent parties.
The petitioner also stated that in a recent board meeting, the state of Punjab put a cap on the allocation of Bhakra water supplied to the state of Haryana at 4,000 cusecs and submitted a dissenting note on the board’s decision, refusing to comply. While Rajasthan and representatives of the central govt lent support to Haryana’s demand of 8,500 cusecs in the special board meeting, Himachal Pradesh abstained. Subsequently, the decision to allocate 8,500 cusecs of water as per the process was undertaken with a majority view.
“Instead of accepting the decision, the state of Punjab immediately created a big law and order blunder by sending a police force to the dam area to stop every drop of water, and the Punjab CM and other leaders of Punjab issued various provocative statements. Subsequently, Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini wrote a letter to the Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, which was again replied to in a provocative manner by Mann.
