New Delhi, Oct 10 (ANI): The Tamil Nadu Government on Wednesday filed a contempt petition against Karnataka in the Supreme Court over its decision to stop the release of water from Cauvery river to the state.
In its application filed through counsel Umapathi Ganesh, Tamil Nadu contended that Karnataka has deliberately violated the apex court's September 28 directive to supply water to the state.
The apex court's September 28 order had come after the CRA meeting of September 19 had failed to produce a solution as both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu had rejected the award of 9,000 cusecs of water by the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh-headed panel to save the standing crops in the delta region.
An apex court bench of Justices D.K. Jain and Madan Lokur had earlier warned Karnataka that if it failed to comply with the CRA directive, it (the bench) will have to pass appropriate orders.
"This is the order passed by the CRA, headed by the Prime Minister. You don't want to comply with it. We are very sorry for the kind of respect you have for the highest authority. You comply with the directive or we will pass the order," the apex bench told the counsel appearing for the Karnataka Government.
The apex court then directed the state to release 9,000 cusecs of water under the distress sharing formula from September 20 to October 15 and sought its reply within a week.
Under Article 355, it is the duty of the Union Government to protect states against external aggression, internal disturbances and to ensure that the governance of the state is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.
The apex court was hearing an application by Tamil Nadu to direct Karnataka to release 2-tmc ft of water daily for 24 days till the onset of the northeast monsoon. (ANI)
