HYDERABAD: The Supreme Court has observed that granting a stay on the implementation of the gazette notification issued by the central government, which notifies the jurisdiction of the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB), would be disastrous.
On Wednesday, during the hearing of the petition filed by the Telangana government challenging the notification, a two-judge bench led by Justice Abhay S Oka asked the state government to explain why it should stay a notification issued in 2021.
“These notifications have survived for three years now. Why do you want a stay now?” the court asked.
In response, CS Vaidhyanathan, senior advocate representing Telangana, said the notification was not being implemented. The bench then asked, “Then why are you seeking a stay? Granting such relief is not permissible.”
Vaidhyanathan replied, “It is not being implemented because it cannot be implemented. The KRMB considered the apportionment between Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. A second water disputes tribunal was constituted in 2004, and an award was passed, which was stayed by the Supreme Court.”
However, Jaideep Gupta, senior advocate representing Andhra Pradesh, said the notification was being implemented.
He further argued that the new states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana came into existence in 2014, and therefore, there has been no inter-state allocation until now. The central government is satisfied that the water allocated to the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh has not yet been divided between the two new states.
The Supreme Court has adjourned the hearing to July 28 for further proceedings.