CHANDIGARH: Punjab assembly will hold a special session Monday as the decades-old water-sharing dispute with Haryana reignited. The session follows Centre's directive for Punjab to release an additional 4,500 cusecs a day to Haryana from Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) reservoirs for eight days.
The move, adding to the existing 4,000 cusecs a day already flowing to Haryana, has drawn resistance from Punjab, which contends it has no surplus water to spare. State officials said Haryana has already exceeded its quota and current flow was allowed only on humanitarian grounds.
Will safeguard state’s waters, says Punjab Cong; SAD petitions PM
Punjab boycotted a BBMB partner states meeting Saturday, protesting the short notice and asserting it will not engage further until the assembly session concludes. According to Punjab, BBMB regulations require a seven-day notice for special meetings. Two previous meetings were also held with just a day’s notice.
The row comes ahead of the annual BBMB water allocation cycle beginning May 21. The dispute escalated after Centre, represented by Union home secretary Govind Mohan, sided with Haryana’s demand despite Punjab’s objections. On April 30, both state officials attended a BBMB meeting where the board ordered the release of 8,500 cusecs to Haryana.
Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann convened an all-party meeting Friday, followed by the assembly session call. All political parties in Punjab expressed solidarity, although BJP politicians said Haryana had received additional water in the past, suggesting the current crisis was avoidable.
In a parallel move, Haryana held its own all-party meeting, with unanimous backing for its position. Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini claimed Punjab had agreed to the extra release, prompting Mann to call the statement “completely false and misleading” in a sharply worded letter, accusing BJP-led Union and Haryana govts of “bullying tactics against the people of Punjab”.
Leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa said after a Congress legislature party meeting: “We are prepared. We will safeguard the state’s waters and interests,” adding the party would withhold its full strategy from the press. Despite a united front, Punjab’s political parties have a long record of trading blame over the state’s water disputes.
SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal appealed to PM Narendra Modi to intervene, criticising AAP govt in Punjab. “The current rulers of the state are playing with fire by openly promising to release water to Haryana and Rajasthan,” he said. “Our CM Bhagwant Mann’s belated posturing is like shutting the door after the horse has bolted.”
Of SAD’s three MLAs in the 117-member assembly, only Ganieve Kaur Majithia remains aligned with the party. AAP holds 93 seats, Congress 16, BJ, BSP 1, with one independent and one seat vacant ahead of the Ludhiana West bypolls.
The move, adding to the existing 4,000 cusecs a day already flowing to Haryana, has drawn resistance from Punjab, which contends it has no surplus water to spare. State officials said Haryana has already exceeded its quota and current flow was allowed only on humanitarian grounds.
Will safeguard state’s waters, says Punjab Cong; SAD petitions PM
Punjab boycotted a BBMB partner states meeting Saturday, protesting the short notice and asserting it will not engage further until the assembly session concludes. According to Punjab, BBMB regulations require a seven-day notice for special meetings. Two previous meetings were also held with just a day’s notice.
The row comes ahead of the annual BBMB water allocation cycle beginning May 21. The dispute escalated after Centre, represented by Union home secretary Govind Mohan, sided with Haryana’s demand despite Punjab’s objections. On April 30, both state officials attended a BBMB meeting where the board ordered the release of 8,500 cusecs to Haryana.
Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann convened an all-party meeting Friday, followed by the assembly session call. All political parties in Punjab expressed solidarity, although BJP politicians said Haryana had received additional water in the past, suggesting the current crisis was avoidable.
In a parallel move, Haryana held its own all-party meeting, with unanimous backing for its position. Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini claimed Punjab had agreed to the extra release, prompting Mann to call the statement “completely false and misleading” in a sharply worded letter, accusing BJP-led Union and Haryana govts of “bullying tactics against the people of Punjab”.
Leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa said after a Congress legislature party meeting: “We are prepared. We will safeguard the state’s waters and interests,” adding the party would withhold its full strategy from the press. Despite a united front, Punjab’s political parties have a long record of trading blame over the state’s water disputes.
SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal appealed to PM Narendra Modi to intervene, criticising AAP govt in Punjab. “The current rulers of the state are playing with fire by openly promising to release water to Haryana and Rajasthan,” he said. “Our CM Bhagwant Mann’s belated posturing is like shutting the door after the horse has bolted.”
Of SAD’s three MLAs in the 117-member assembly, only Ganieve Kaur Majithia remains aligned with the party. AAP holds 93 seats, Congress 16, BJ, BSP 1, with one independent and one seat vacant ahead of the Ludhiana West bypolls.
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