New Delhi: The Central Government yesterday mentioned that it has moved an application in the Supreme Court for a two-week extension of time to frame a Cauvery water sharing ‘scheme.’
On Apr. 9, a three-Judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra ordered the Centre to frame a scheme as per its Feb.16 judgment in the Cauvery dispute.
It categorically said that the Centre, by drafting a scheme by May 3, should prove its bona fide intention to resolve the 200-year-old inter-State water dispute, starting from between the erstwhile Madras Presidency and Kingdom of Mysore and now Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
“Our order stands,” the CJI curtly told the Centre’s Counsel. He then said the application would be taken up on May 3, as scheduled. Karnataka faces Assembly elections on May 12.
On Apr.9, the Court voiced suspicion about the Centre’s resolve to play its crucial part in ending the conflict between the two States. A Feb.16 order of the Court directed the Centre to frame a scheme by March 29. Yet, on the eve of the deadline, the Union Government moved court for another three months time to frame a scheme. This would have taken it well past the Karnataka Assembly polls.
This post was published on April 28, 2018 6:40 pm