Chief minister Jagadish Shettar on Sunday said that the decision to release 9,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu was “unavoidable” as the Supreme Court had directed the state to adhere to the order of Cauvery River Authority, which is headed by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.
Mr Shettar appealed to Dr Singh to send an expert team to the state to assess the situation on the ground. At his home office Krishna, Mr Shettar said, “We tried our best to protect the interest of the state and farmers. But ultimately, one has to bow to the law of the land. We released water to prove our bona fide before the court. This will help us continue our legal battle in the days to come.”
The government will file a review petition before the Supreme Court in two days and seek a stay on its directives by explaining the drought situation in the state, especially in the Cauvery basin area. Mr Shettar blamed the Prime Minister for not listening to the appeals made by the state government during the Cauvery River Authority meeting last week and asking the state to release 9,000 cusecs till October 15. “He (Dr Singh) did not listen to our pleas and did not take into account realities on the ground before pronouncing his decision. I still feel that he needs to intervene and set this anomaly right,” he said.
Evading a direct reply to a question whether the state would release water till October 15, Mr Shettar said the state will appeal before the Supreme Court and hope for a favourable judgement. Water resource minister Basavaraj Bommai said that as inflows into KRS and Kabini reservoirs had gone up following rain in Bhagamandala and other catchment areas, the state government decided to release nearly 7,000 cusecs of water from these dams.
The CM urged protesters to maintain peace and said the state government will file a petition before the Supreme Court. Karnataka has already appealed to Dr Singh, who is also the CRA chairman, to review its September 19 order and to keep it in abeyance till the decision is reviewed.