Bengaluru: Karnataka is unlikely to file a review petition before the Supreme Court against the Cauvery verdict. After consulting with the State’s legal team headed by senior Supreme Court Advocate Fali S. Nariman, the government has come to a conclusion that not filing a review petition will be beneficial to the State, sources said.
A meeting of leaders of all political parties, chaired by Chief Minister Siddharamaiah last week, decided to take an appropriate decision on the future course of action based on the opinion of the legal team.
In its judgment in February, the Apex Court had raised the 270 tmc. ft. share of Cauvery water for Karnataka by 14.75 tmcft and reduced Tamil Nadu’s share, while compensating it by allowing extraction of 10 tmc. ft. of groundwater from the river basin.
The Court also asked the Centre to decide on the type of dispute redressal forum to implement the Cauvery schemes.
After the SC order, Karnataka has said though the Apex Court has directed to form one such forum, it need not be Cauvery Water Management Board alone, but may be any sort of a committee, temporary and permanent. Tamil Nadu, on its part, has been demanding the Centre to set up the Cauvery Water Management Board.
Though political parties and farmers’ associations in Karnataka are of the view that the State deserved to get a higher allocation of water — about 30 to 40 tmcft instead of 14.75 tmcft, sources said that filing a review petition will prolong the case and it will cause more anxiety among people.
Cauvery resolution in TN budget session likely
Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu Government is mulling at passing a resolution on Cauvery in the upcoming budget session scheduled to begin on March 15, even as the main opposition, DMK, is insisting on holding a special sitting to get the Centre to constitute Cauvery Management Board to regulate the water release from Karnataka.
With the deadline set by the Supreme Court to set up a mechanism to release water due to Tamil Nadu is getting closer, the State and the opposition parties want to exert maximum pressure on Centre to set up the Cauvery Management Board.
“It is likely to have a resolution passed during the budget session itself instead of holding a session separately,” said a senior Minister.
This post was published on March 14, 2018 6:43 pm