Apex court stays high court's Beas order

The Supreme Court today stayed the order of the Rajasthan High Court directing the Bhakhra Beas Management Board and the central government to take over the administration, management and operation of the headworks located in Punjab.

The high court had also asked the Punjab government to hand over the three headworks to the board, which regulates the supply of water to Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan.

The high court passed the order on May 2, acting on a public interest petition by a resident of Rajasthan. He had alleged that there was shortfall in the delivery of Rajasthan's share of water, because of which the farmers were suffering.

The Punjab government had challenged the maintainability of the petition in the teeth of several statutory provisions against judicial intervention. According to the inter-state agreement of 1981, the central government was the authority to take action on complaints of breach of the agreement.

Moreover, the central government and the Rajasthan government had not filed their statements before the high court, it was pointed out by Punjab counsel to Chief Justice of India who stayed the high court order.

According to the high court, Section 79 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act grants the power to maintain and operate the headworks to the board, but it is the Punjab government which has control over the activities at present.

"The state of Punjab does not have any right to keep control of headworks and to flout the mandate of Section 79. It is only the board that is entitled to keep administration and control of headworks in order to safeguard the fundamental right to water of the petitioner and other farmers of Rajasthan," the court had said.

In its appeal, the Punjab government argued that the high court could not decide inter-state water disputes as the Constitution barred it.

Even otherwise, disputes involving the Centre and states could be decided only by the Supreme Court and not by any high court.