Cauvery Verdict: Karnataka welcomes Supreme Court judgment, Tamil Nadu in shock

The Supreme Court’s verdict on Cauvery water sharing was welcomed by a jubilant Karnataka that has received 14.75 thousand million cubic feet of water more, while Tamil Nadu’s leaders expressed shock and disappointment over it. However, no untoward incident was reported in both the states and the bus services between both the states, which had been suspended in the morning pending the judgement, were restored in the evening. 

Minutes after the judgement, Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah was all smiles when he came to present the budget at the Assembly.

Siddaramaiah said that though the Supreme Court verdict on the Cauvery issue was not as per the state’s appeal, he was happy with it, as “we have got some relief”.

Asked if Karnataka was in a position to release water, he said, “We always have to obey court orders. We cannot depend on rainfall. Normal years aside, there is a distress formula we have to adopt.” On the court directing constitution of the Cauvery Water Management Board in six weeks, which the state had always been opposing, he said, “it is not being considered by the Supreme Court. It has been left to the government of India.”

Meanwhile, former Karnataka CM and state BJP president BS Yeddyurappa said that if the BJP wins the forthcoming Assembly elections, it will undertake steps for the rejuvenation of Cauvery. “In the coming years, the demand for water is only going to increase. When BJP comes to power, we shall work towards increasing the green cover in Western Ghats. It is important to preserve and increase the forest cover of Kodagu to ensure the rejuvenation of Cauvery,” he tweeted.

Janata Dal (Secular) chief HD Deve Gowda and his son HD Kumaraswamy also welcomed the order. Pro-Kannada leader Vatal Nagaraj said while the judgment was not completely in the state’s favour, it was not against its interests either.

In contrast, the blame game in Tamil Nadu between the ruling AIADMK and DMK over the Apex court verdict has already begun. 

Accusing the AIADMK government of surrendering the hard-won rights over the Cauvery river by DMK leader M Karunanidhi, DMK working president MK Stalin urged the state government to immediately convene an all-party meeting.

Hitting back at the DMK, Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami alleged that DMK had even failed to ensure that the tribunal order issued in 2007 was published in the gazette. “Tamil Nadu’s right has been restored as the AIADMK government advocated our position strongly by engaging senior lawyers in the Supreme Court. There are many favourable aspects in the order for the state. But to blame Amma’s government, they (DMK) are refusing to acknowledge it,” he said, adding that to protect the farmer rights, the government would take appropriate actions after consulting with legal experts.

All the opposition parties including Congress, BJP and Left parties have expressed the disappointment over the verdict.

Actors Kamal Haasan, who is set to embark on his political journey, appealed to both Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to maintain amity in the wake of the ruling. Meanwhile, Rajinikanth expressed disappointment over the verdict and urged the state to file a review petition. “Since the final verdict by the Supreme Court on the Cauvery water sharing amounts to further affecting the livelihood of the farmers in Tamil Nadu, it is very disappointing,” he said in a tweet.